TIM 295 



No. 9012 








* v V, « n 



"o^ 




*P> 4 




«oV* 



J ^V 



'■ "i : 'Jlll' : v/ 



?• A V ^ 









» ^3 













S% 







• A^ 




„C/ vP » < 



-^ a 



o_ v 




v »L^L'* p* a* 

^ A^ •««• ^P <£ •• 





v • o, V 



-j- 










v .*i^Lr* e 



;• .^ ^ -.^^r** . * v 






"^. -°-* .^ <*. *^' sS A^" '°* " *»* A^ 






3 ^ 0v ^ 








4/ ^ 






0^ e-— *. 'P, A* > .« , i , «- 











■ ^ A^ 



V ... ^ ' 






«p^ 



! ?^v %^^\/^ V"^/ \^ f V.. Sr^y*-. 







^°^ 








^^ g 



p *^ A^ 



-^ % 



•J>*r 



■*> 13. 










r ^o x 








O^ *o . » * A 




<> 'ST. 



>:- \*> *o . » * A 



«i> 



A 



o . "^ 



V*. ^ > _ s • • 



.^m W^»-%^ •^^o^fl^'N./' f^SHfc"^ 






p° Vv 







4 CU 



^0' "^ 



\** 



" A V "^ 



c»\.:i&.>o A.-'JsLrS.. cAc^Ao 







> ^ 




C.lf 

,0^ 








^°* 




•• * ' A 

•• <w ••Jill"- V* - 

. >* A <> *^T1« 4 .0*" t> *»-»• A <* 











•\/ v V^V' "V^^V^ V^V V"-'-* 

6°* 























V^:^./' V^V" '^>/^^\/ v--- 

g^ ^ *o . » * a <* *;t:t* o^ \ *o . » • a 













O * OM o 

I'- \/ 

• A <> *7^T s (s o *o.T* A <* *^rvT* ,g^ v5 *o , » * A ^> 

A v 6 ° ■"> * ^ ♦ . l " * *u A o ° " ° ^ ^ ^ . t . ^ * A c ° N ° ^ ^ 







r.«* a 



V 








'oV 










/* X"*^V* \^^\^ v T ^°'/ "^'^^^ v 







, 4 ,G ^> 'o..* A 











'bK 




Bureau of Mines Information Circular/1985 



Cobalt Availability— Market Economy Countries 
A Minerals Availability Program Appraisal 

By C. P. Mishra, C. D. Sheng-Fogg, R. G. Christiansen, 
J. F. Lemons, Jr., and D. L. DeGiacomo 




UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 



75 

A*/NES 75TH A**^ 



Information Circular 9012 

h 

Cobalt Availability— Market Economy Countries 
A Minerals Availability Program Appraisal 

By C. P. Mishra, C. D. Sheng-Fogg, R. G. Christiansen, 
J. F. Lemons, Jr., and D. L. De Giacomo 




UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 
Donald Paul Hodel, Secretary 

BUREAU OF MINES 
Robert C. Horton, Director 







Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data 



Cobalt availability— market economy countries. 

(Bureau of Mines information circular; 9012) 

Bibliography: p. 31 

Supt. of Docs, no.: I 28.27: 

1. Cobalt industry. 2. Cobalt mines and mining. I. Mishra, C P. (Chamundeshawari 
P.) II. Series: Information circular (United States. Bureau of Mines); 9012. 

IN2 9 SU 4 ~ 622 s [338.2748] 84-600271 

[HD9539.C462] 



111 

PREFACE 

l>0 

c\ 

_^ In order to assess the availability of nonfuel minerals, the Bureau of Mines Minerals 

>n& Availability Program collects, compiles, and evaluates information on producing, developing, and 

explored properties and mineral processing plants worldwide. Objectives are to classify domestic 
V and foreign resources, identify by cost evaluation resources that are reserves, and prepare mineral 

availability analyses. 

This report is one of a continuing series of minerals availability reports that analyze the 

availability of 34 commodities from domestic and foreign sources. Questions about the program 

should be addressed to Chief, Division of Minerals Availability, Bureau of Mines, 2401 E St., 

N.W., Washington, DC 20241. 









CONTENTS 



Page 

Preface iii 

Abstract 1 

Introduction 2 

Cobalt use and production 2 

Evaluation methodology 3 

Reserves and resources estimation 7 

Geology of cobalt-bearing deposits 11 

Stratabound cobalt-bearing copper deposits 11 

Northern Copper Belt of Shaba, Zaire 12 

Roan copper-cobalt deposits of Zambia 12 

Magmatic cobalt-bearing nickel sulfide 

deposits 12 

Sudbury, Ontario, deposits 12 

Thompson, Manitoba, belt 12 

U.S. deposits 12 

South African deposits 13 

Nickel laterite deposits 13 

Primary cobalt sulfide and arsenide deposits 15 

Mining of cobalt-bearing deposits 16 

Stratabound cobalt-copper deposits 16 

Magmatic cobalt-nickel deposits 16 

Nickel laterite deposits 16 

Primary cobalt and arsenide deposits 16 

Cobalt recovery processes 16 

Copper cobalt-bearing oxides and sulfides 16 

Nickel cobalt-bearing sulfides 16 



Page 

Nickel-cobalt laterites 19 

Pyrometallurgical processes 20 

Hydrometallurgical processes 20 

Primary cobalt sulfide and arsenide deposits .... 20 

Capital and operating costs 20 

Capital costs 20 

Operating costs 21 

Copper sulfide and oxide deposits 21 

Nickel sulfide deposits 22 

Nickel laterite deposits 22 

Comparison of operating costs for sulfide and 

laterite deposits 23 

Potential cobalt availability 23 

Annual availability 25 

Impact of cobalt price on cobalt availability 27 

Copper sulfide properties 27 

Nickel sulfide properties 28 

Nickel laterite properties 28 

Impact of energy costs and capital investments 

on cobalt availability 29 

Impact of energy costs 29 

Impact of capital costs 30 

Conclusions 30 

References 31 

Appendix.-Properties investigated but not included 

in study 32 



ILLUSTRATIONS 



1. Minerals availability program workflow 4 

2. Location of cobalt-bearing deposits 8 

3. Percentage breakdown of potentially recoverable cobalt by country 9 

4. Percentage breakdown of potentially available cobalt by deposit type and production status 9 

5. Location map of Zaire and Zambia Copper Belt deposits 11 

6. Location map of Sudbury Basin deposits, Canada 13 

7. Location map of cobalt-bearing deposits of the United States 14 

8. Typical nickel laterite zones 14 

9. Location map of New Caledonia laterite deposits 15 

10. Diagram of major recovery stages and key processing facilities for Zaire copper deposits 17 

11. Diagram of major recovery stages and key processing facilities for Inco operations at Sudbury, Canada 18 

12. Diagram of major recovery stages and key processing faculties for Falconbridge operations 19 

13. Total cobalt potentially available at total production costs less than $25/lb cobalt 23 

14. Total copper and byproduct cobalt potentially available from copper-cobalt deposits at various copper total 

production costs 24 

15. Total nickel and byproduct cobalt potentially available from nickel-cobalt deposits at various nickel 

total production costs 24 

16. Cobalt potentially available from Canadian nickel sulfide deposits at various nickel total production costs 25 

17. Cobalt potentially available from New Caledonia and Philippines nickel laterite deposits at various nickel 

total production costs 25 

18. Cobalt potentially available from Zaire and Zambia copper deposits at various copper total production costs .... 25 

19. Potential annual production of cobalt from producing copper deposits for $0.89/lb copper total production cost . . 26 

20. Potential annual production of cobalt from producing nickel deposits for $3.45/lb and $6/lb nickel total 

production cost 26 

21. Potential annual production of cobalt from nonproducing nickel deposits for $3.45/lb and $6/lb nickel total 

production cost 26 

22. Byproduct cobalt price impact on potentially available cobalt from copper sulfide deposits for various copper 

production costs and cobalt prices of $7/lb, $15/lb, and $20/lb 28 

23. Byproduct cobalt price impact on potentially available cobalt from nickel sulfide deposits for various nickel 

production costs and cobalt prices of $7/lb, $15/lb, and $20/lb 28 

24. Byproduct cobalt price impact on potentially available cobalt from nickel laterite deposits for various nickel 

production costs and cobalt prices of $7/lb, $15/lb, and $20/lb 28 



VI 

TABLES 

1. U.S. consumption of cobalt by end use, 1979-81 3 

2. World cobalt production by country, 1981 3 

3. List of evaluated properties with mining methods and ownership 5 

4. Representative commodity prices in January 1981 dollars 7 

5. Demonstrated in situ resources and recoverable cobalt 8 

6. Potential availability of cobalt by deposit type 9 

7. Nickel laterite properties excluded from cobalt study 9 

8. Comparison of Bureau of Mines and National Materials Advisory Board (NMAB) estimates of in situ 

cobalt resources 10 

9. Comparison of Bureau of Mines and Wyllie estimates of contained cobalt resources 10 

10. Nickel laterite process comparison 19 

11. Typical mine and mill capital costs for undeveloped nickel deposits per annual ton ore mined 21 

12. Range of estimated operating costs for copper and nickel properties 21 

13. Weighted estimated average operating costs for copper and nickel properties 22 

14. Comparison of annual availability of cobalt with projected demand 1985-2000 27 

15. Effect of cobalt price on potential cobalt availability 27 

16. Impact of energy cost on cobalt availability from nickel and copper deposits 29 

17. Impact of capital investment on cobalt availability from undeveloped properties 30 

UNIT OF MEASURE ABBREVIATIONS USED IN THIS REPORT 

°C degree Celsius 

g/L gram per liter 

kg/m 2 kilogram per square meter 

km kilometer 

NOTE: Throughout the report, "ton" refers to the metric ton (2,204.6 lb) unless otherwise 
indicated. 



lb 


pound 


m 


meter 


pet 


percent 


tr oz 


troy ounce 



COBALT AVAILABILITY— MARKET ECONOMY COUNTRIES 
A Minerals Availability Program Appraisal 



By C. P. Mishra, 1 , C. D. Sheng-Fogg, 2 R. G. Christiansen, 3 
J. F. Lemons, Jr., 1 and D. L. De Giacomo 4 



ABSTRACT 

The Bureau of Mines performed a study of the availability of cobalt from market economy coun- 
tries. The study entailed the detailed analysis of 97 deposits which contain 3.9 billion lb of cobalt at the 
demonstrated level; in 94 of the deposits cobalt is recovered as a byproduct, and in 3 it is considered the 
primary product. Since 97 pet of all recoverable cobalt is derived as a byproduct from copper and nickel 
deposits, the report focused on these two sources. At an assumed market price of $0.89/lb for copper, 
$3.45/lb for nickel, $475/tr oz for platinum, and $7/lb for cobalt, 1,330 million lb of cobalt at the 
demonstrated level are potentially available. This total includes 1,105 million lb of cobalt from copper 
properties, 190 million lb from nickel, 29 million lb from platinum, and 6 million lb from primary cobalt. 
This analysis indicates that the production cost for 589 million lb of cobalt can be totally covered by 
the revenues obtained from the other metals produced. The impacts of increases in capital investment 
and energy costs are also discussed. 



'Supervisory physical scientist. 

2 Physical scientist. 

'Mining engineer. 

'Metallurgical engineer. 

Minerals Availability Field Office, Bureau of Mines, Denver, CO. 



INTRODUCTION 



Cobalt is considered to be a critical commodity for the 
United States, owing to its extensive use in the aviation, 
manufacturing, and defense industries. Cobalt forms alloys 
that have heat and wear resistance, high strength, and 
superior magnetic properties. Despite its strategic impor- 
tance, there is no current domestic primary production of 
cobalt; the United States must rely upon undependable 
foreign sources for much of its supply. As of 1982, approx- 
imately 48 pet of the cobalt used in the United States came 
from Zaire and Zambia(1). 5 These areas have proven to be 
unstable sources of supply, as illustrated by the 1978 
disruption of the cobalt supply from Zaire due to insurgent 
activity. 

Because of the critical nature of cobalt and the 
unstable sources of supply, it is important to examine the 
availability of cobalt from both present and potential alter- 
native sources. This report examines the potential 
availability of cobalt from market economy countries. 6 The 
evaluation identifies the geological sources, as well as the 
technicalogical and economic factors that affect cobalt 
availability. 

Cobalt is generally recovered as either a byproduct or 
coproduct of primary copper, nickel, or platinum produc- 
tion. In the case of nickel, cobalt availability is further 
related to the nickel product produced since cobalt is often 
not recovered in ferronickel production. Initially, 141 prop- 
erties were reviewed for possible detailed availability 
analysis. The final list of properties selected for further 
examination consisted of 3 primary cobalt deposits and 94 
properties that contain cobalt as a byproduct. The final list 
excluded nickel laterite deposits where cobalt assays are 



not defined and those instances where cobalt is not 
recovered from ferronickel production. Cobalt lost due to 
production of ferronickel is discussed later in the report. 

In situ resources in this study are compared with 
resource estimations of other publications. Resources are 
expressed in terms of in situ tons. 7 

Recoverable cobalt is reported as metal in millions of 
pounds. Previous studies that estimated worldwide 
resources of cobalt include work by the National Materials 
Advisory Board (2), Wyllie (3), and the Bureau of Mines (4). 
The resource estimates in this study and the previous 
studies are generally comparable, as discussed later in this 
report. Differences are attributed to varying cutoff grades 
and additional or updated data used in this study. 

An economic evaluation of each deposit was performed 
to determine its cost of production, which includes a 15-pct 
discounted cash flow rate of return (DCFROR). The 
DCFROR is commonly defined as the rate of return that 
makes the present worth of cash flow from an investment 
equal to the present worth of all after-tax investments. 
These individual deposit analyses were than aggregated in- 
to availability curves that relate the total cost of produc- 
tion to the potential recoverable commodities. The study 
investigated the interrelationship of the recovery of cobalt 
and its associated primary commodities copper, nickel, and 
platinum. 

The impact of energy cost on the availability of cobalt 
is presented in the report. Also included is a study on the 
effect of increase in capital investment costs on potential 
cobalt availability. 



COBALT USE AND PRODUCTION 



The availability of cobalt is of vital importance to 
numerous industries due to its use in alloys, coatings, 
nonmetallic oxides, and other compounds. The primary use 
of cobalt is in superalloys for aircraft and surface engine 
parts which are required to endure stress at high 
temperatures. Because cobalt retains its magnetic proper- 
ties to 1,121° C, it is widely used in permanent magnets, 
particularly in the electrical equipment industry. Cobalt 
alloys are utilized in machinery, primarily in cutting tools, 
which require very high strength and abrasion resistance. 
Cobalt also serves as the metal matrix (cement) for various 
carbides known as cemented carbides. Cemented carbide 
bits are used in drilling and mining operations. Coatings of 
cobalt alloys impart resistance to abrasion, heat, impact, 
and corrosion, and are thus used in many industries to im- 
prove material performance. 

The major uses of nonmetallic cobalt compounds are in 
paints, ceramics, glass, and chemicals. Cobalt oxides and 
organic compounds are used as drying agents in paints and 
ceramics and also serve as decolorizers, dyes, pigments, 



"Italicized numbers in parentheses refer to items in the list of 
references preceding the appendix. 

"Market economy countries, as defined by the Bureau of Mines, in- 
clude all countries except Albania, Bulgaria, China, Cuba, Czechoslovakia, 
the German Democratic Republic, Hungary, Kampuchea, North Korea, 
Laos, Mongolia, Poland, Romania, the U.S.S.R., and Vietnam. 



and oxidizers. In the form of a ground coat frit, cobalt pro- 
motes the adherence of enamel to steel; in organic com- 
pounds, it is used to improve the adherence of steel to rub- 
ber in steel-belted radial tires. In chemical processes, cobalt 
is used primarily as a catalyst in hydrogenation, but it is 
also useful in hydration, desulfurization, oxidation, reduc- 
tion, and synthesis of hydrocarbons. Cobalt can be added to 
soils as a nutritive agent. 

In 1981, the total U.S. consumption of cobalt was 11.7 
million lb, of which superalloys accounted for 4.2 million lb, 
or 36 pet. Use of cobalt in magnetic alloys was 1.7 million lb 
of cobalt, 14 pet of total U.S. consumption. Use of cobalt as 
a drier, catalyst, or wear-resistant material accounted for 
the majority of the remaining consumption of the metal in 
the United States. Table 1 summarizes the domestic con- 
sumption of cobalt by end use for the years 1979-81. 

Total world cobalt production in 1981 was 56 million lb. 
A breakdown by country is shown in table 2. Current cobalt 
supply is highly dependent on the production from Zaire 
and Zambia, which supplied 62.5 pet of the total world pro- 
duction as a byproduct of copper recovery. Finland also 
recovers cobalt as a byproduct of copper operations. Other 
sources of cobalt from market economy countries include 



'In this report "ton" refers to the metric ton (2,204.6 lb) except where 
otherwise indicated. 



TABLE 1.— U.S. consumption of cobalt by end use, 1979-81 

(Thousand pounds of contained cobalt) 

Use 1979 1980 1981 

Steel: 

Stainless and heat resisting 137 

Full-alloy 227 

High-strength low-alloy W 

Tool 413 

Superalloys 5,276 

Alloys (excludes alloy steels and 
superalloys): 

Cutting and wear-resistant materials' 2,123 

Welding materials (structural and 

hard-facing) 444 

Magnetic alloys 3,266 

Nonferrous alloys 392 

Other alloys 274 

Mill products made from metal powder W 

Chemical and ceramic uses: 

Pigments 199 

Catalysts 1 ,882 

Ground coat frit 554 

Glass decolorizer 43 

Drier in paints or related usage 2 1,791 

Feed or nutritive additive NA 

Miscellaneous and unspecified 381 

Grand total ! 17,402 15,321 11,680 

NA Not available. W Withheld to avoid disclosing company pro- 
prietary data; included in "Miscellaneous and unspecified". 



TABLE 2.— World cobalt production by country, 1981 p 



47 

116 

W 

321 

6,285 



1,344 

620 

2,267 

150 

210 

W 

282 

1,656 

482 

40 

1,331 
75 
95 



35 

141 

W 

170 

4,195 



1,076 

488 

1,687 

131 

123 

W 

329 

1,279 

441 

40 

1,378 

58 

109 



'Includes cemented and sintered carbides and cast carbide dies or 



parts. 



includes drier and feed usage. 
Source: References 5-6. 



recovery from nickel sulfide deposits in Canada, Botswana, 
and Zimbabwe; nickel laterite deposits in the Philippines 
and New Caledonia; both nickel sulfide and laterite 
deposits in Australia; and one high-grade cobalt deposit in 
Morocco. 







Metal content 






Metal content 1 


or pet 


Metal 




of mine output, 


of total 


recovered, 2 


Country 


tons 


mine output 


tons 



Zaire 

Zambia 

U.S.S.R 

Canada 

Australia 

Cuba 

Finland 

Philippines 

Morocco 

Botswana 

New Caledonia . . 

Zimbabwe 

Japan 

Norway 

France 

United Kingdom 3 . 

Germany, Federal 

Republic of . . . 

United States . . . 

Total 4 



615,504 

3,416 

2,250 

2,080 

' 61,996 

1,715 

1,034 

997 

789 

254 

141 

110 

NAp 

NAp 

NAp 

NAp 

NAp 
NAp 



51.2 

11.3 

7.4 

6.9 

6.6 

5.7 

3.4 

3.3 

2.6 

.8 

.5 

.3 

NAp 

NAp 

NAp 

NAp 

NAp 
NAp 



611,124 
2,570 
3,847 
910 
NAp 
NAp 
1,229 
NAp 
NAp 
NAp 
NAp 
93 
2,421 
1,444 
447 
6726 

e399 
406 



30,276 



100 



25,616 



e Estimated. 



PPreliminary. r Revised. NAp Not applicable. 



'Figures represent cobalt content in mined ore. 

'Figures represent elemental cobalt recovered unless otherwise 
specified. In addition to the countries listed, Czechoslovakia presumably 
recovers cobalt from Cuban nickel concentrates. Belgium has imported 
small quantities of partly processed materials containing cobalt, but 
available information is inadequate for reliable estimates of cobalt 
recovery from these materials. 

'Estimated recovery of elemental cobalt in refined cobalt oxides and 
salts from intermediate metallurgical products originating in Canada. 

'In addition to the countries listed, Bulgaria, Cyprus, the German 
Democratic Republic, Greece, Indonesia, Poland, the Republic of South 
Africa, Spain, and Uganda are known to produce ores that contain cobalt. 
Information is inadequate for reliable estimates of output levels. Other 
copper- and/or nickel-producing nations may also produce ores containing 
cobalt, but recovery is small or nil. 

Source: Reference 1. 



EVALUATION METHODOLOGY 



The procedures followed in the evaluation of cobalt 
availability from deposit identification to development of 
economic availability information are illustrated in figure 1. 
In this study, 3 primary cobalt, 4 platinum, 24 copper, and 
110 nickel properties that contain demonstrated amounts 
of cobalt were investigated. Evaluations of domestic pro- 
perties were performed at Bureau of Mines Field Opera- 
tions Centers located in Denver, CO, Juneau, AK, Pitt- 
sburgh, PA, and Spokane, WA. Foreign deposits were 
evaluated by private companies under contract to the 
Bureau. 

A total of 97 deposits were selected for detailed study: 
3 primary cobalt deposits, 4 platinum deposits, 17 cop- 
per-cobalt deposits, and 73 nickel-cobalt deposits. Table 3 
lists the deposits selected for detailed evaluation. Potential 
cobalt sources investigated but not included in this study 
are listed in the appendix. 

The analysis methodology employed in this study 
follows: 

1. Resource quantities and grades as of January 1981 
were evaluated for each selected deposit in relation to the 
physical parameters of the ore body and technological 



limitations of recovery methods. All technologies are based 
on current industry practice. 

2. Capital, operating, and transportation costs for min- 
ing, concentrating, and postmill processing methods were 
estimated for each producing or proposed project. 

3. Two economic evaluations were performed to iden- 
tify the relationship of cobalt and primary commodity 
availability at each property. 

The first analysis determined the net total cost of 
cobalt production, after assuming all other commodities 
were sold at representative 1981 prices. A low average total 
cobalt cost after these credits indicates a property where 
revenues generated by other commodities are sufficient to 
cover their own production cost as well as part or all of the 
cost of cobalt production. A high average total cost after 
these credits indicates a property where the revenues from 
other commodities are not sufficient to cover either their 
own production cost or the cost of producing cobalt. 

In the second analysis, cobalt and other commodities, 
except the primary commodity, are assumed to be sold at 
1981 prices, and the average total cost of the primary com- 
modity is determined. This average total cost can be com- 



Identification 

and 

selection 

of deposits 



Tonnage 

and grade 

determination 



Engineering 
and cost 
evaluation 



Deposit 

report 

preparation 



Mineral 

Industries 

Location 

System 

(MILS) 

data 



MAS 

computer 

data 

base 



MAS 

permanent 

deposit 

files 



Taxes, 

royalties, 

cost indexes, 

prices, etc... 



Data 

selection and 

validation 



Variable and 

parameter 

adjustments 



Economic 
analysis 



Data 



Availability 
curves 



Analytical 
reports 



Sensitivity 
analysis 



Data 



Availability 
curves 



Analytical 
reports 



Figure 1.— Minerals availability program workflow. 



pared with an expected long-term market price for the 
primary commodity to evaluate if the resources can be 
economically recovered. 

4. Upon completion of individual property analyses, 
properties with the same primary commodity were ag- 
gregated to provide an overall assessment of potential 
availability of cobalt as a byproduct of that primary com- 
modity. 

Resource estimates were based upon current recovery 
technology and data obtained from a number of sources: 
Bureau of Mines, U.S. Geological Survey, State publica- 
tions, professional journals, industry publications, com- 
pany annual and 10K reports, and data made available to 
the Bureau by private companies. The knowledge and ex- 
pertise of personnel from Government agencies and in- 
dustry were also utilized. Adjustments were made to data 
to reflect January 1981 resources. For this study, only 
demonstrated resources were considered. Demonstrated 
resources, as defined by the U.S. Geological Survey and the 
Bureau of Mines (8), include measured plus indicated ton- 
nages where quantities are computed from site inspection, 
including outcrops, trenches, mine workings, and drill 
holes, and whose grades are computed from sampling. 

Capital costs for exploration, acquisition, development, 
and mine and mill plant and equipment were estimated. 
The total capital expenditure for each of the different min- 
ing and processing facilities includes the costs of mobile 
and stationary equipment, construction of engineering 
facilities and utilities, and working capital. Environmental 
costs were included when known. Facilities and utilities (in- 
frastructure) is a broad category that includes the cost of 
access and haulage facilities, water facilities, power supply, 
and personnel accommodations. Working capital is a 
revolving cash fund required to cover operating expenses 
such as labor, supplies, taxes, and insurance. 



For this study, all capital investments made 15 years 
prior to the date of analysis (January 1981) are assumed to 
be fully depreciated. For producing operations, book values 
of investments as of January 1981 were calculated, and all 
reinvestments and operating and transportation costs were 
estimated in January 1981 dollars. Capital and operating 
costs for undeveloped deposits were estimated in January 
1981 dollars. All analyses were performed in constant 
dollars; therefore, no escalations of costs or prices were con- 
sidered. All costs for foreign operations were converted to 
U.S. dollars using exchange rates to reflect U.S. dollar- 
equivalent costs of doing business within that foreign 
country. 

Operating costs for each property were determined as a 
combination of direct, indirect, and miscellaneous 
operating costs. Direct operating costs include materials, 
utilities, production and maintenance labor, and payroll 
overhead. Indirect operating costs include technical, 
clerical, and administrative labor, facilities maintenance, 
supplies, and research. Miscellaneous costs include local 
taxes, insurance, deferred expenses, and loan payments. 

An economic evaluation of each deposit was performed 
to determine its cost of production, based on an assumed 
15-pct discounted cash flow rate of return (DCFROR) and 
the commodity prices shown in table 4. The DCFROR is 
commonly defined as the rate of return that makes the pre- 
sent worth of cash flow from an investment equal to the 
present worth of all after-tax investment (9). The average 
total cost of production determined by the Supply Analysis 
Model (SAM), a computerized modeling system developed 
by the Bureau, provides an estimate of what the average 
long-run price of the primary commodity must be to 
recover all costs of production, including a predetermined 
percent rate of return on investment (10). 

A separate tax-records file in SAM, maintained for 



TABLE 3.— List of evaluated properties with mining methods and ownership 



Name of 

country and property 



Status' 



Ore type Mining method 



Owner 



NICKEL-COBALT PROPERTIES 



Australia: 
Greenvale 

Kambalda 
Mt. Keith . 



Botswana: 
Selebi/Phikwe 



Brazil: 
Niquelandia (CNT) . . . 
Niquelandia (Codemin) 

Canada: 

Birchtree 

Bucko Lake 

Clarabelle 

Copper Cliff North . . . 
Copper Cliff South . . . 

Crean Hill 

Creighton 

Falconbridge 

Falconbridge East . . . 

Frood 

Fraser 

Garson 

Key Lake 

Levack 

Little Stobie 

Lockerby 

McCreedy West 

Mystery Lake 

Onaping-Craig 

Pipe Surface 

Pipe Underground 

Shebandowan 

Soab 

Stobie 

Strathcona 

Thompson 

Totten 



Guatemala: Exmibal 



India: Sukinda 



Indonesia: Gag Island 

New Caledonia: 

Goro 

He Art 

Kouaoua 

Moneo 

Nakety 

Nepoui 

Ouaco 

Ouinne 

Poro 

Poun 

Prony 

Thio 

Tiebaghi 



Laterite 

Sulfide 
. . do . . 



Sulfide 



Laterite 
. . do . . 



Sulfide 
. do . 
. do . 
. do . 
. do . 
. do . 
. do . 
. do . 
. do . 
. do . 
. do . 
. do . 
. do . 
. do . 
. do . 
. do . 
. do . 
. do . 
. do . 
. do . 
. do . 
. do . 
. do . 
. do . 
. do . 
. do . 
. do . 

Laterite 

. . do . . 

. . do . . 



do . 
do . 
do . 
do . 
do . 
do . 
do . 
do . 
do . 
do . 
do . 
do . 
do . 



Surface 



Underground 
Surface 



Surface, underground 
Surface 



do 



Underground 

do 

Surface 

Undergound 

do 

Surface 

Surface, underground 
Undergound 

do 

Surface, undergound . 
Underground 

do 

Surface 

Underground 

Surface, underground 

Underground 

Surface, underground 

Surface 

Surface, undergound . 

Surface 

Underground 

do 

do 

Surface, underground 
Underground 

do 

Surface, underground 

Surface 



do 
do 



do 
do 
do 
do 
do 
do 
do 
do 
do 
do 
do 
do 
do 



Metals Exploration Ltd., Freeport 

Exploration. 
Western Mining Corp. 
Metals Exploration Ltd., Freeport 

Exploration. 



BCL Ltd. 



Companhia Niquel De Tocantins. 
CODEMIN. 



Inco. 

Bowden Lake Nickel Mines. 

Inco. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 
Falconbridge. 

Do. 

Do. 
Falconbridge. 
Inco. 

Key Lake Mining Corp. 
Inco. 

Do. 
Falconbridge. 
Inco. 

Do. 
Falconbridge. 
Inco. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 
Falconbridge. 
Inco. 
Boliden AB and Timiskaming. 

Inco and Hanna. 

Do. 

P.T. Pacific Nickel. 



Inco. 

Cofremni. 
Pentecost Nickel. 
CGMC/Ballande. 
Societe Le Nickel. 

Do. 

Do. 
Societe G Montagnat. 
Societe Le Nickel. 
Cofremni. 
Penamex. 
Societe Le Nickel. 
Cofremni. 



Philippines: 

Infanta 

Nonoc Mine 
Soriano 



United States: 
Alaska: Yakobi Island . 
California: 

Gasquet 

Pine Flat area 

Maine: Crawford Pond 



do 
do 
do 



Sulfide 



N 


Laterite 


N 


. . do . . 


N 


Sulfide 



'P indicates mines producing in 1981 and N means nonproducing deposits. 



Surface 



do 
do 
do 



do 
do 
do 



Philippine Goernment. 
Marinduque Mining Corp. 
Soriano Corp. 



Inspiration Development Co. 

California Nickel Corp. 
Hanna Mining Corp. 
Knox Mining Corp. 



TABLE 3.— List of evaluated properties with mining methods and ownership— Con. 



Name of 

country and property 



Status' 



Ore type Mining method 



Owner 



NICKEL-COBALT PROPERTIES- Con. 



United States:— Con. 

Minnesota: 

Birch Lake 

Birch Lake Underground 2 . 
Birch Lake Underground 1 
Birch Lake Underground 2 
Birch Lake Underground 3 
Birch Lake Underground 4 
Birch Lake Underground 5 

Dunka River 

Ely Spruce Underground . 

Minnamax 

Partridge River 

Spruce Pit Area 

Oregon: Red Flat 

Puerto Rico: Guanajibo .... 

Zimbabwe: 

Trojan 

Empress 

Shangani 

Finland: 

Keretti Mine 

Luikonlahti 

Vuonos Mine 

Uganda: Kilembe 

United States: 

California: Grey Eagle 

Missouri: Boss-Bixby 

Zaire: 

Dikuluwe-Mashamba 

Kakanda-Diselle 

Kambove 

Kamoto Underground Mine . 

Kov Open Pit 

Mutoshi Ruwe 

Tenke Fungurume 

Zambia: 

Baluba 

Chibuluma 

Chingola Division 

Rokana Division 

South Africa: 

Der Brochen 

Impala 

Rustenburg 

Western Platinum 

Morocco: Bou Azzer 3 

United States: 

Idaho: Blackbird 

Missouri: Madison 



Sulfide 

do . 

do . 

do . 

do . 

do . 

do . 

do . 

do . 

do . 

do . 

do . 
Laterite 
. . do . . 



Sulfide 
. . do . . 
. . do . . 



Surface 

Underground . 

do 

do 

do 

do 

do 

Surface 

Underground . 
do 

Surface 

do 

do 

do 



Underground . 

do 

do 



Inco U.S. Inc.— Hanna— Duval. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 
AMAX. 
Inco. 
AMAX. 
U.S. Steel. 

Inco U.S. Inc.— Hanna— Duval. 
Hanna Mining Corp. 
Puerto Rico Government. 



Trojan Nickel Mine Ltd. 
Rio Tinto Mining. 
Johannesburg. 



COPPER-COBALT PROPERTIES 



Sulfide 
. . do . . 
. . do . . 

Sulfide 



Underground . 

do 

do 

do 



N 


. do 


N 


. do 


P 


. do 


P 


. do 


P 


. do 


P 


. do 


P 


. do 


P 


. do 


N 


. do 


P 


. do 


P 


. do 


P 


. do 


P 


. do 



Surface 

Underground 



Surface 

do 

Underground . 

do 

Surface 

do 

do 



Underground . 
do 



Surface, underground 
do 



Outokumpu Oy. 
Myllykoski Oy. 
Outokumpu Oy. 

Uganda Government. 



Noranda. 

Getty Oil-Azcon-Hanna. 



Gecamines. 
Do. 
Do. 
Do. 
Do. 

Do. 



Zambian Consolidated Copper 

Mines, Ltd. (ZCCM). 
Do. 
Do. 



PLATINUM-COBALT PROPERTIES 



Sulfide 
. . do . . 
. . do . . 
. . do . . 

Sulfide 



.. do 
.. do 



Underground . 

do 

do 

do 

do 



do 
do 



Platinum Proprietary Ltd. 
Impala Platinum Holdings Ltd. 
Rustenburg Platinum Ltd. 
Western Platinum Ltd. 

Compagnie De Tifnout (CTT). 



Noranda. 
Anschutz Corp. 



1 P indicates mines producing in 1981 and N means nonproducing deposits. 

2 The Birch Lake Underground area incorporates an extensive enough resource that 6 mining units were proposed. 

'Ceased production in 1982. 



TABLE 4.— Representative commodity prices in 
January 1981 dollars 

Commodity Price 1 

Cobalt per lb 2 $7.00 

Copper per lb .... 0.89 

Gold per tr oz . . . . 425.00 

Iron per ton . . . 52.32 

Nickel per lb 3.45 

Palladium per tr oz 200.00 

Platinum per tr oz . . . . 475.00 

Silver per tr oz . . . . 10.00 

Sulfur per ton . . . 117.00 

Zinc per lb 0.41 

'Prices are 1981 average prices with adjustments to avoid extremes. 
All prices are from reference 11 except as indicated in footnote 2. 

! Cobalt price (72) approximates the average cobalt spot prices from 
March 1982 to June 1983. This price from reference 12 was used to avoid 
the unrealistic high cobalt price that existed in January 1981. 



each State and foreign country, contains the relevant fiscal 
parameters under which the mining firm would operate. 
This file includes corporate income tax, property tax, 
royalties, severance tax, and other taxes that pertain to the 
production of the commodity. These tax parameters are ap- 
plied to each mineral deposit evaluated, with the assump- 
tion that every property represents a separate corporate en- 
tity. SAM also contains an additional file of economic in- 
dices to allow for continuous updating of all cost estimates 
to the desired study date. Upon completion of the in- 
dividual cobalt property analyses, all properties included in 
the study were aggregated into commodity resource 
availability curves. The total resource availability curve is 



a tonnage-cost relationship that shows the total quantity of 
recoverable product potentially available at a specified 
cost. This curve is an aggregation of the total potential 
cobalt that could be recovered over the entire life of each 
operation, ordered from operations with the lowest average 
total cost of production to those with the highest. The 
curve provides a concise analysis of comparative costs 
associated with any given level of potential total output. 
Certain assumptions are inherent in the development of the 
curve: 

1. All deposits produce at full operating capacity 
throughout the life of the property. 

2. Each operation is able to sell all of its marketable 
commodities at 1981 representative prices. 

3. Preproduction development of each nonproducing 
deposit is initiated in the same base year. 

Since it is difficult to predict when deposits are going 
to be developed, a base year assumption is necessary. The 
preproduction period allows only for the minimum 
engineering and construction time necessary to initiate pro- 
duction under the proposed development plan. As a result, 
the additional time lags and potential costs involved in fil- 
ing environmental impact statements, receiving required 
permits, financing, etc., are minimized. 

Annual availability studies were also conducted which 
indicate the amount of cobalt that can be produced each 
year at assumed full operating capacity related to produc- 
tion costs. 

These annual studies identify increases in availability 
as nonproducing deposits are assumed to go into produc- 
tion and show decreases as properties deplete resources. 



RESERVES AND RESOURCES ESTIMATION 



Resource information and other pertinent data for the 
97 deposits selected for detailed evaluation have been ag- 
gregated by country and are presented in table 5. Figures 2 
and 3 illustrate the locations and percentage distribution of 
recoverable cobalt within these countries. 

Cobalt is associated with nickel in both laterite and 
sulfide deposits, with copper in both oxide and sulfide 
deposits, and with platinum-group metals in sulfide 
deposits; in a few cases, it is the primary commodity in 
sulfide or arsenide occurrences. Cobalt is a secondary com- 
modity in approximately 97 pet of the cobalt resource. 

On a regional basis, the African deposits evaluated in 
Zaire, Zambia, South Africa, and Zimbabwe contain the 
largest percentage of cobalt, 42 pet of the total evaluated 
resource, principally from producing properties. The 
circum-Pacific countries (New Caledonia, the Philippines, 
and Australia), account for 38 pet of the potentially 
recoverable cobalt; North America, 14 pet; and South 
America, 1 pet. New Caledonia has the largest amount of 
undeveloped recoverable cobalt resources, all from laterite 
deposits. The remaining countries account for 5 pet of 
potential recoverable cobalt. The 53 producing properties 
contribute 47 pet (1,824 million lb) of the total potentially 
recoverable cobalt from the evaluated deposits. Over 76 pet 
(1,379 million lb) of the recoverable cobalt from producing 
properties originates from 13 copper deposits* Thus, the 
majority of current cobalt production is from copper-cobalt 
deposits. The 13 producing nickel laterite deposits account 
for approximately 7 pet (267 million lb) of the total cobalt 
available. 



The 44 nonproducing deposits contain 2,102 million lb 
of recoverable cobalt, 53 pet of the total potentially 
recoverable amount. Only 9 pet (329 million lb) of the total 
resource is available from four nonproducing copper sulfide 
and oxide deposits, whereas 36 pet (1,429 million lb) of the 
total potentially recoverable cobalt is from nickel laterite 
nonproducing deposits. Thus, the preponderance of poten- 
tial cobalt resources not in production are from nickel- 
cobalt laterites. The distribution of cobalt resources by 
type and production status is shown in table 6 and il- 
lustrated by figure 4. 

Potential sources of cobalt not evaluated in this study 
include nickel laterite deposits where cobalt is being 
recovered within a ferronickel product, or where cobalt 
grades are not available, or -where cobalt is recovered from 
recycling operations. 

Table 7 identifies 22 nickel laterite deposits not in- 
cluded in this study. These properties contain at least 27.8 
million tons of potentially recoverable nickel; with an 
assumed cobalt feed grade of 0.05 pet and 27 pet overall 
recovery, 1,138 million lb of cobalt would be available. 
These sources could increase cobalt availability by 29 pet. 

In addition, a significant tonnage of cobalt is potenti- 
ally available from manganese seabed nodules. Nodules 
typically contain approximately 25 to 30 pet manganese, 
1.0 to 1.5 pet nickel, 0.5 to 1.0 pet copper, and 0.25 pet 
cobalt (13). The distribution is widespread with resources 
located in the central east Pacific area between 0° to 20° 
north latitude and 120° to 180° west longitude and from 
300 to 9,000 m below sea level (14). Assuming a nodule den- 



TABLE 5.— Demonstrated in situ resources and recoverable cobalt 

In situ Recoverable 

cobalt from Total Pet 

Country and Number Demonstrated Primary Cobalt producing recoverable of total 

type of of Primary resources, commodity grade, properties, cobalt, recoverable 

deposit deposits commodity 10 6 tons grade, pet pet 10 6 lb 10 6 lb cobalt 

Australia:' 

Sulfide 2 Nickel 

Laterite 1 ...do... 305.4 0.80 0.03 40.83 74.9 1.9 

Brazil: Laterite 2 ...do... W 1.39 .05 28.66 40.5 1.0 

Canada: Sulfide 27 ...do... 811.8 1.42 .03 125.69 161.2 4.1 

Finland: Sulfide 3 Copper . . . 12.5 2.20 .26 35.05 35.05 .9 

New Caledonoia: Laterite 13 Nickel 949.3 1.74 .09 10.88 1,124.45 28.7 

Philippines: Laterite 3 . . . do . . . 388.9 1.29 .10 168.40 299.27 7.6 

South Africa: Sulfide 4 Platinum.. 1,018.6 .0003 .007 31.00 33.04 .8 

United States: 

Sulfide 2 Copper ... W .93 .05 12.66 .3 

Do 14 Nickel 3,150.4 .20 .01 183.81 4.7 

Do 2 Cobalt ... W .44 .44 88.03 2.2 

Laterite 4 Nickel .... 73.9 .84 .09 96.55 2.5 

Zaire: Sulfide 7 Copper... 612.1 4.36 .31 1,029.40- 1,315.64 33.5 

Zambia: Sulfide 4 . . . do . . . 499.7 2.92 .09 314.74 314.73 8.0 

Others 2 : Various 9 Various . . . 259.5 NAp .07 39.45 146.11 3.8 

Total 97 NAp 8,198.3 NAp NAp 1,824.10- 3,925.94 100 

NAp Not applicable. W Withheld to avoid disclosing company proprietary data; included in total. 

'Australia tonnage and grades are combined to avoid disclosing individual proprietary information. 

'Others include Botswana, Guatemala, India, Indonesia, Morocco, Uganda, and Zimbabwe. Primary commodities include nickel, copper, and cobalt. 




Figure 2.— Location of cobalt-bearing deposits. 




TABLE 7.— Nickel laterite properties excluded from cobalt study 



Figure 3.— Percentage breakdown of potentially recoverable 
cobalt by country. 



TABLE 6.— Potential availability of cobalt by deposit type 

Recoverable 

Number of cobalt, Pet of 

Type of deposits deposits 10 1 lb total 

TOTAL RECOVERABLE COBALT 

Copper-cobalt (oxide + sulfide) ... 17 1,708,000 44 

Nickel-cobalt (sulfide) 47 394,300 10 

Nickel-cobalt (laterite) 26 1,696,500 43 

Primary and platinum-cobalt 7 127,100 3 

Total 97 3,925,900 100 

RECOVERABLE COBALT FROM PRODUCING DEPOSITS 

Copper-cobalt (oxide + sulfide) ... 13 1,379,200 35 

Nickel-cobalt (sulfide) 23 140,900 4 

Nickel-cobalt (laterite) 13 267,000 7 

Primary and platinum-cobalt 4 37,000 1 

Total 53 1,824,100 47 

RECOVERABLE COBALT FROM NONPRODUCING DEPOSITS 

Copper-cobalt (oxide + sulfide) ... 4 328,900 9 

Nickel-cobalt (sulfide) 24 253,400 6 

Nickel-cobalt (laterite) 13 1,429,400 36 

Primary and platinum-cobalt 3 90,100 2 

Total 44 2,101,800 53 



Producing nickel and 
copper sulfide deposits 



Producing nickel 
laterite deposits 



Nonproducing nickel 
laterite deposits 




Nonproducing nickel and 
copper sulfide deposits 



Producing primary and 

platinum cobalt deposits (I pet) 
Nonproducing primary and 
platinum cobalt deposits (2 pet) 







Assumed 




Recoverable 


recoverable 


Country and 


nickel, 


cobalt, 


deposit name 


10" ton 


10 8 lb 



Brazil: 

Barro Alto 

Jussara 

Montes Claros .... 
Morro do Engenho 
Morro do Niquel . . 
Sao Felix do Xingu 
Sao Joas do Piaui . 

Philippines: 

Borongan 

Dinagat 

Makambal 

Mount Kadig 

Rio Tuba 

Sablayan 

Santa Cruz 



3.7 



92 



18.1 



886 



Others:' 

Colombia: Cerro Matoso . . . 
Dominican Republic: 

Falcondo Bonao 

Greece: 

Euboea 

Aghios loannis 

Indonesia: Pomalaa 

Malagasy Republic: 

Ambatovy and Analamy 
Valozoro 



6.0 



160 



Total 



27.8 



1,138 



Figure 4.— Percentage breakdown of potentially available 
cobalt by deposit type and production status. 



'Countries combined to maintain confidentiality of individual data. 



sity of 11.9 kg/m\ 20-pct nodule recovery rate from the 
ocean floor, and 30 pet moisture content, approximately 2.1 
billion dry tons of nodules would be recovered. At a 50-pct 
recovery rate for cobalt, approximately 5.8 billion lb of 
cobalt could potentially be available. 

The main short-term deterrents to the development of 
deep-sea resources are international politics regarding 
jurisdiction of the deposits and the massive capital invest- 
ment required to develop a viable mining and beneficiation 
system. This resource may be a significant cobalt source in 
the long-range supply situation. 

Several previous studies examined the world resources 
of cobalt (2, 4). Resource information from these studies 
was compared with the present study. Comparisons were 
necessary to define the scope of the study and illustrate 
any potential discrepancies. 

A comparison of in situ resources used in this avail- 
ability study with those estimated by the National 
Materials Advisory Board (NMAB) is presented in table 8. 
There is reasonable agreement for the tonnage values from 
Finland and Zambia. 

The USBM study excluded those properties where 
cobalt grades were not verified or where cobalt was lost to 
ferronickel production. Consequently, ■ New Caledonian 
properties evaluated consisted of 13 nickel laterite 
deposits, and tonnage data is between the high- and low- 
grade laterite values of the NMAB. In the case of Aus- 
tralia, even though similar nickel and cobalt cutoff grades 
are used, a considerably higher tonnage (895 versus 305.4 
million tons) is reported by the NMAB. This higher figure 
may be the result of the inclusion of more properties in the 
NMAB study. For Brazil, the NMAB tonnage reflects 
more properties than the two included in the Bureau study. 



10 





Primary 
commodity 




Bureau of Mines 




NMAB(2) 




10* 
ton 


Grade, pet 


10« 

ton 


Grade, pet 


Country 


Primary Cobalt 


Primary Cobalt 



TABLE 8.— Comparison of Bureau of Mines and National Materials 
Advisory Board (NMAB) estimates of in situ cobalt resources 

Australia: 

Sulfide Nickel 

Laterite . . . do . . . 305.4 0.80 0.03 

Brazil ...do... W 1.39 .05 

Canada ...do... 811.8 1.42 .03 

Finland Copper 12.5 2.20 .26 

New Caledonia Nickel 949.3 1.74 .09 

Philippines ...do... 388.9 1.29 .10 

South Africa . . Platinum 1,018.6 .0003 .007 

United States: 

Copper-sulfide Copper W .93 .05 

Nickel-sulfide Nickel 3,150.4 .20 .01 

Nickel-laterite . . . do . . . 73.9 .84 .09 

Primary cobalt Cobalt W .44 .44 

Missouri lead-zinc NAp NAp NAp NAp 

Zaire Copper 612.1 4.36 .31 

Zambia . . . do . . . 499.7 2.92 .09 

Others 4 Various 259.5 NAp .07 

Total NAp 8,198.3 NAp NAp 

NAp Not applicable. W Withheld to avoid disclosing company proprietary data; included in total. 

'High-grade laterites— inferred. 

2 Low-grade laterites— inferred. 

3 Primary copper sulfides not separated from nickel sulfides. 

'Includes Botswana, Guatemala, Indian, Indonesia, Morocco, Uganda, and Zimbabwe. 



8,526 



740 


0.8 


155 


1.3 


250 


1.5 


600 


1.5 


13 


3.8 


'300 


2.6 


2,500 


1.4 


200 


1.3 


950 


NAp 


( 3 ) 


NAp 


3 650 


.16 


55 


1.0 


6 


1.3 


200 


NAp 


370 


5.5 


480 


2.5 


1,057 


NAp 



NAp 



0.015 
.1 
.13 
.05 
.23 
.09 
.12 
.10 
.006 

NAp 
.015 
.08 
.55 
.03 
.42 
.14 
.09 



NAp 



The in situ resources of the Philippines for the 
Bureau's evaluated deposits are larger than those of the 
NMAB (388.9 versus 200 million tons), owing to the inclu- 
sion of large potential resources of two mines. The large 
variance (612.1 versus 370 million tons) for Zaire is the 
result of the NMAB study excluding some lower grade 
properties as noted by the higher copper grade (5.5 versus 
4.36 pet). In Canada, a total demonstrated resource of 81 1.8 
million tons of nickel-cobalt sulfide from 27 properties is 
higher than the NMAB estimate of 600 million tons. Some 
of the Canadian deposits included in this study have 
limited development drilling information owing to Inco's 
policy of not disclosing drilling data and individual reserve 
values. Canadian companies tend to be conservative in re- 
porting future resource estimates; thus, the individual re- 
source values reported in this study were estimated from 
regional resources and are larger than the company 
estimates. 

In the United States, 12 nickel sulfide mining units 
from the Duluth Gabbro Complex, Minnesota, contain 
more than 3 billion tons of in situ resources. NMAB may 
have only included deposits most likely to be developed, 
whereas all demonstrated resources in the district were ac- 
counted for by the Bureau in this study. Byproduct cobalt 
resources of Missouri lead mines were not included in this 
study because of the current pilot plant status of the re- 
quired technology to recover and further process the 
cobalt-nickel concentrate. 

In 1978, Wyllie conducted a world cobalt study for the 
Federal Republic of Germany; his reserve estimates are 
compared with those of this study in table 9. For New 
Caledonia, Zaire, and Zambia, the Bureau's resource esti- 
mates are greater than Wyllie 's. Large quantities of former- 
ly inferred tonnages have been further explored since 1978 
and are reported in this study at the demonstrated level. 
The larger Wyllie values for Australia and the Philippines 
are possibly the result of Wyllie including more properties. 



TABLE 9.— Comparison of Bureau of Mines and Wyllie 
estimates of contained cobalt resources 

(Thousand tons of contained cobalt) 

Country Bureau of Mines' Wyllie (3) 

Australia 92 135 

Brazil 29 30 

Canada 244 220 

Finland 33 20 

New Caledonia 854 385 

Philippines 389 425 

South Africa 71 NAp 

United States 447 NAp 

Zaire 1 ,898 450 

Zambia 450 300 

Others 2 182 700 

Total 4,689 2,665 

NAp Not applicable. 

'Calculated from table 5; in situ demonstrated resources multiplied 
by cobalt grade. 

includes Botswana, Guatemala, India, Indonesia, Morocco, Uganda, 
and Zimbabwe. 



Wyllie did not include resources from the United States 
and South Africa. 

The Bureau of Mines reported in a 1983 Minerals Com- 
modity Profile (MCP), world estimates of cobalt resources 
that are comparable to the estimates in this study (4). The 
MCP resource estimate for Zambia includes one additional 
property, which was not included in our study owing to a 
lack of information on grade, and mining technologies at 
the time of the study. In Zaire, this study utilizes a conser- 
vative estimate for the reported reserves of Tenke 
Fungurame. For the United States, the MCP estimate in- 
cludes a larger area of the Duluth Gabbro region, which 
was excluded in the present study owing to lack of informa- 
tion that could be used to relate grade and tonnage to ap- 
propriate mining and processing technologies. 



11 



GEOLOGY OF COBALT-BEARING DEPOSITS 



Generally, cobalt occurs in sufficient concentration to 
be recovered as a byproduct in three types of deposits: 
(1) stratabound copper deposits located in Zaire and Zam- 
bia, (2) copper-, nickel-, and platinum-enriched magmatic 
sulfides such as those in the Sudbury District of Canada 
and the Bushveld Igneous Complex in South Africa, and 
(3) nickeliferous laterite deposits in such areas as New 
Caledonia and the Philippines. These three deposit types 
account for 97 pet of the potentially recoverable cobalt 
resources included in this study. In addition, 3 pet of the 
cobalt can be recovered as the primary commodity from 
hydrothermal deposits associated with locally concentrated 
veins of cobalt-rich sulfides and arsenides, such as the 
deposit at Bou Azzer, Morocco. 



STRATABOUND COBALT-BEARING 
COPPER DEPOSITS 



Cobalt occurrences of this type are found associated 
with particular copper-rich strata of sedimentary or 
metasedimentary rocks. This type of mineralization is 
found primarily in the Copper Belt of central Africa, which 
is about 500 km long and 30 km wide, extending from 
Ndola (32 km northeast of Luanshya), Zambia, to Kolwezi, 
Zaire (fig. 5). The copper and cobalt occur in both sulfide 
and oxide zones which are confined in folded and faulted 
strata of the Roan Supergroup of Precambrian age, which 
has undergone extensive folding and faulting. 



Northern Copper Belt of Shaba, Zaire 

The 300-km-long area, that extends from Kolwezi in 
the northwest to the region southeast of Lubumbashi can 
be divided into three groups: (1) the western group, which 
includes four evaluated deposits, Mutoshi-Ruwe, Kamoto 
underground mine, Kov open pit, and Dikuluwe- 
Mashamba, (2) the central group, which includes three 
evaluated deposits, Kambove, Tenke-Fungurume, and 
Kakanda-Diselle, and (3) the eastern group, which current- 
ly does not recover cobalt. The copper-cobalt ores of the 
Kilwezi area occur in two complex folded and faulted 
sedimentary horizons of the Roan. 

The ore minerals of Serie des Mines in Shaba, Zaire, 
are chalcopyrite, bornite, linneite, and carrollite. In the 
oxidized zones, heterogenite and asbolite occur as 
secondary cobalt minerals. Both the sulfide ores and the 
oxides contain small amounts of selenium, uranium, 
gold, and platinum metals, which can be recovered as by- 
products of copper-cobalt processing operations. The 
ore bodies, which vary in size from deposit to deposit, are 
4 to 15 m thick and contain 1.8 to 5.7 pet copper and 0.13 
to 0.42 pet cobalt. 

The seven evaluated deposits account for approximate- 
ly 612 million tons of demonstrated resources containing 19 
million tons of recoverable copper and 1,316 million lb of 
potentially recoverable byproduct cobalt. At the 1981 an- 
nual production rate of 34 million lb of cobalt, the Zaire cop- 
per deposits contain 39 yr of production at the 
demonstrated resource level. 




Figure 5.— Location map of Zaire and Zambia Copper Belt deposits. 



12 



Roan Copper-Cobalt Deposits of Zambia 

The 200-km-long Copper Belt encompasses south- 
eastern Zaire and extends for another 160 km into Zambia. 
Within the Zambian Copper Belt, cobalt mineralization is 
confined to the western part of the copper deposits, which 
consist of the Chibuluma and Baluba deposits and the 
Rokana and Chingola Divisions. The dominant tectonic 
structure in the Zambian Copper Belt is the 100-km-long 
Kafue anticline with a northwest-striking axis. On the 
southeast edge of this anticline are the major cobalt- 
bearing deposits of Baluba and Chibuluma. 

The Chigola Division ore bodies occur along 40 km of 
strike in Lower Roan strata, with seven different horizons 
across a vertical stratigraphic column of 150 m in the 
sulfide mineralization. The Chingola Division consists of 
multiple underground and open pit mines which are re- 
ferred to as one study area in this report. 

The Rokana Division deposits occur in the eastern limb 
of the complexly folded Nkana syncline. Cobalt from the 
Rokana Division accounts for 38 pet of Zambian cobalt 
resources in this study. The Rokana Division is similar to 
the Chingola Division in that it consists of multiple under- 
ground and open pit mines which are evaluated as one 
study area. 

The Zambian copper grades range from 2.4 to 4.7 pet, 
while the cobalt grades range from 0.05 to 0.16 pet. The 
mineralization, which occurs in stratabound cobalt-bearing 
copper deposits, consists of four sulfides— chalcocite, bor- 
nite, chalcopyrite, and carroUite— as well as oxides such as 
heterogenite and asbolane. The four Zambian areas studied 
contain 315 million lb of potentially recoverable cobalt from 
demonstrated resources, which represents approximately 
42 yr of production at the 1981 mine capacity levels. 



MAGMATIC COBALT-BEARING NICKEL 
SULFIDE DEPOSITS 

Cobalt is also found in association with nickel-, copper-, 
or platinum-rich sulfide deposits in mafic or ultramafic 
rocks. Principal occurrences of this type included in this 
study are the Sudbury Complex, Ontario, Canada; the 
Thompson Nickel Belt District, Manitoba, Canada; the 
Duluth Gabbro sulfide complex of the United States; and 
the Merensky Reef platinum deposit of South Africa. 

Sudbury, Ontario Deposits 

The Sudbury Complex (fig. 6) is generally considered to 
be a late-stage magmatic plutonic intrusive that has 
undergone several stages of differentiation both before and 
during emplacement. The complex appears to be in the 
form of a southern-plunging asymmetrical funnel (15). 

The elliptical outcrop of the complex is about 58 km 
long in an east-northeast direction and approximately 26 
km wide. Exploration has been undertaken to depths of 3.2 
km around the southern range of the basin. The southern 
range of this complex has been vertically upfaulted some 
4.8 km relative to the northern range. Consequently, the 
Sudbury Complex has been studied over an apparent ver- 
tical thickness of 8.0 km. 

In the Sudbury Complex, major ore minerals are typic- 
ally pentlandite, pyrrhotite, and chalcopyrite; these 
minerals account for 95 pet of the total mineralization. 
Minor constituent minerals, which may be locally abun- 



dant, are cubanite, magnetite, ilmenite, and pyrite. 
Minerals containing platinum-group metals (e.g., sper- 
rylite) are locally present and account for most of the 
byproduct platinum-group production. 

Sudbury deposits can generally be divided into three 
categories: marginal south range deposits, marginal north 
range deposits, and offset deposits. Marginal deposits of 
the south range are generally zoned, ranging from massive 
ore at the footwall to disseminated ore towards the hanging 
wall. Ore is hosted by periodotites. The Little Stobie 
deposit is typical of those that occur in the south range. 
The mine occurs in a shallow embayment at the base of the 
main norite mass of the south range with major ore 
minerals of pyrrhotite, pentlandite, and chalcopyrite and 
lesser amounts of pyrite, ilmenite, and magnetite. The Lit- 
tle Stobie No. 1 ore body is approximately 610 m long and 
30 m wide and extends from the surface to at least 800 m in 
depth. The Little Stobie No. 2 ore body is about 270 m long 
and 50 m wide and extends from a depth of 90 to 370 m (1 7). 

Ores of the marginal north range deposits are asso- 
ciated with northeast-trending breccias, which dip south- 
east and vary in composition from norite to granite. The 
granite breccia ore contains sulfides as blebs that locally 
coalesce into pods or stringers as in the Levack Mine. Ore 
bodies occur along strike in the form of thick, blunted 
lenses that parallel the norite contact with estimated 
widths of 60 m and depths of about 1,500 m. 

Offset deposits occur in a dikelike offset of sublayer 
norite and gabbros that extend several kilometers away 
from the complex into the footwall. In many cases, sulfides 
form lenslike pods of massive ore associated with high pro- 
portions of inclusions in offset dikes. Frood, Stobie, and 
Copper Cliff North deposits are examples of offset deposits. 
Nickel ores of the Sudbury Basin range from 0.9 to 2.5 pet 
nickel and 0.02 to 0.08 pet cobalt. The total in situ resource 
of the Sudbury Basin is about 495 million tons. 

Thompson Manitoba, Belt 

The Thompson Nickel Belt is located in north-central 
Manitoba, along the boundary between two major struc- 
tural provinces of the Canadian Shield: the Churchill Pro- 
vince to the northwest and the Superior Province to the 
southeast (18). The Belt extends up to 208 km in a north- 
easterly direction. The mineralized zone of the Thompson 
Mine is located between two distinct markers, a skarn in 
the hanging wall and an iron formation in the footwall. The 
Thompson ore body occurs primarily as a sheetlike deposit 
enclosed within drag-folded units of metasedimentary 
rocks with the ore-bearing zone striking approximately N 
30° E and dipping 65° to 75° southeast. Thickness of the ore 
zone ranges from less than 5 m to about 45 m at a depth up 
to 1,500 m. The Pipe Underground ore zone included in this 
study is highly joined and fractured serpentinite. 
Mineralization is composed of pyrrhotite and pentlandite 
occuring as bands and stringers of massive sulfides in 
serpentinite. Manitoban deposits contain 35 pet of the 
Canadian cobalt resource evaluated. Ore grades range from 
0.8 to 2.7 pet nickel and 0.02 to 0.06 pet cobalt. 

U.S. Deposits 

The principal potential source of recoverable cobalt 
from magmatic sulfides in the United States is found in 
association with the Duluth Gabbro Complex in Minnesota 
(fig. 7). The Duluth Gabbro Complex study areas— Birch 



H1M1IMII 



13 



, ,. : ;*MMkMv i ^'--.ii , €& 







r alcon bridge 
East 
FALCONBRIDGE 



LEGEND Scale, km 

y Mine i 

HT'.'s] Nickel irruptive I 

T Whitewater group N 

y^flGranite and granite gneiss 
L" "^ Greenstones and sedimentary rocus 

Figure 6.— Location map of Sudbury Basin deposits, Canada (16). 



Lake, Dunka River, Ely Spruce Underground, Spruce pit 
area, Partridge River, and Minnamax— occur in gabbroic 
igneous intrusions. Mineralization takes the form of 
disseminated sulfide masses, aggregates, and inclusions. 
Mineralization formed as a result of magmatic differentia- 
tion during the crystallization process (18-19). 

The principal nickel mineral is pentlandite associated 
with the copper minerals chalcopyrite and cubanite. Cobalt 
content in the deposit ranges from 0.01 to 0.02 pet. Other 
domestic nickel sulfide deposits included in this study are 
the Yakobi Island deposit, Alaska, and the Crawford Pond 
deposit, Maine. 

South African Deposits 

The Merensky Reef complex of South Africa is the 
principal platinum-producing region among market 
economy countries (20). The Merensky Reef is generally a 
dark, coarsely crystalline pyroxenite with a chromitic basal 
unit. The chromitic basal band is overlain with nickel, cop- 
per, and iron sulfides which host the platinum-group metals 



and comprise the zone of economic importance. This zone 
also contains low-grade, but recoverable, cobalt (0.004 to 
0.007 pet). Four separate Merensky Reef operations were 
analyzed for this report, three of which are currently in 
operation i£l). The producers are Rustenburg, Impala, and 
Western Platinum. In addition, Der Brochen, a non- 
producer, was evaluated. Production is dominated by 
Rustenburg, which accounted for 56 pet of total South 
African platinum output in 1979. Impala accounted for 41 
pet, and Western Platinum supplied the remaining 3 pet. 
All these properties are mined primarily for their platinum- 
group metals, with nickel and copper as major byproducts. 



NICKEL LATERITE DEPOSITS 

Forty-three percent of cobalt resources evaluated in 
this study occur in nickel laterite deposits. Nickel laterite 
ores are formed by the combined action of mechanical and 
chemical weathering (22). As nickeliferous ultramafics, 
which contain principally the mineral olivine, decompose, 



14 




\ ELY SPRUCE UNDERGROUND 

BIRCH LAKE AREAS 00 SPRUCE PIT AREA 
DUNKA RIVER^MINNAMAX 

Wartrid'ge RIVER 





BOSS- . [,~s- ^ 

BIXBYO &MADISON_M]NE -r— ' 





V CRAWFORD 

\ ; \J POND 



Figure 7.— Location map of cobalt-bearing deposits of the United States. 



nickel and cobalt are released and mobilized into solution 
by the downward percolation of ground water. Nickel is 
redeposited at depth by precipitation. This repeated action, 
known as laterization, results in enriched nickel and cobalt 
deposits. Typically, a laterite profile contains four zones: 

1. The leached zone, which is depleted of nickel. 

2. The iron oxide (limonitic) zone, in which nickel is 
disseminated within a mixture of iron oxides. 

3. The transition zone between the oxide and saprolitic 
(garnierite) zones. 

4. The saprolitic (garnierite) zone, composed largely of 
hydrated magnesium silicates in which the magnesium is 
particularly replaced by nickel. 

An idealized stratigraphic section, chemical analyses, 
and extractive procedures for each zone are given in figure 
8. Nickel laterite deposits occur in New Caledonia, the 
Philippines, and the Western United States. 

New Caledonia contains the largest nickel laterite 
resources in the study, 949 million tons from 13 evaluated 
deposits (fig. 9). This vast resource accounts for 29 pet 
(1,124 million lb) of the total potentially recoverable cobalt 
metal. 

Deposits were formed by the weathering of Oligocene 
peridotites, primarily hartzburgite and dunites, which 
cover almost a third of New Caledonia. Although both 
limonitic and garnieritic laterites exist on the island, only 
the garnieritic laterites are mined. The zone of laterization 
extends to a depth of 20 m. Grade range is approximately 
1.5 to 2.5 pet nickel and 0.01 to 0.13 pet cobalt. 



Iron 
oxide 
zone 



Transition 
zone 



Saprolitic 
zone 



IDEALIZED LATERITE 




APPROXIMATE ANALYSIS, pet 


EXTRACTIVE 
PROCEDURE 


'.'.* Hematitic cap '••.•.'* 

Nickeliferous limonite 

'.*•'.■■'■.'••'•'•"' •& "^ 
■■.•••». ' <s > » o 
.'•■:-.• ™ a a . . 

:■#.•/.* ° a a ° ° e\ 
* v Unaltered peridotite y >- 




Ni 


Co 


Fe 


Cr 2 3 


MgO 


<0.8 


<0.l 


>50 


>l 


<0.5 


Overburden 

to 

stockpile 


0.8 

to 
1.5 


0.1 
to 
0.2 


40 
to 
50 


2 
to 
5 


0.5 
to 
5 


Hydrometallurgy 


1.5 
to 
1.8 


0.02 
to 
0.1 


25 
to 
40 


1 

to 
2 


5 

to 
15 


Hydrometallurgy 
pyrometallurgy 


1.8 
to 
3 


10 
to 
25 


15 
to 
35 


Pyrometallurgy 


0.25 


0.01 

to 

0.02 


5 


0.2 

to 

1 


35 

to 
45 


Left in situ 



Figure 8.— Typical nickel laterite zones. 



Current operations are typically ferronickel producers 
or, like SLN's Doniambo operation, produce both ferro- 
nickel and matte with cobalt recovered only from the 
matte. For the seven properties in this area, matte smelting 
is proposed for 40 pet of the ore and ferronickel processing 
is proposed for the other 60 pet. 






15 



vile Art 



Poum 



Tiebaghi 



Ouaco 




LEGEND 
| Laterite 
J Peridotite 




Nlpoui 



so 

_1 1 1 I- 



100 

I 



Goro Field 
(Goroond Prony) 



s> 



Figure 9.-^- Location map of New Caledonia laterite deposits. 



Depending on the chemical nature of the ore, either fer- 
ronickel or nickel and cobalt can be produced. Much of the 
low-iron (garnieritic and/or saprolitic) ore is dried and 
shipped to Japan for ferronickel production, while the high- 
iron (limonitic) ore containing up to 0.2 pet cobalt is refined 
into nickel and cobalt metal. Marinduque Mining and In- 
dustrial Corp. operates a reduction roast ammonium car- 
bonate leach refinery to recover nickel and cobalt on Nonoc 
Island, Philippines. 

The nickel laterite deposits in the United States occur 
mostly in northern California and southern Oregon (fig. 7) 
in limonitic ore which is formed by the leaching of soils pro- 
duced by the weathering of ultramafic, often serpentized, 
periodotite bodies. An example of this type of formation oc- 
curs near Riddle, OR, which is located on a remnant of a for- 
merly extensive laterized plateau. The grade of domestic 
nickel laterite deposits, 0.75 to 0.88 pet nickel and 0.07 to 
0.15 pet cobalt, is somewhat lower than that of most ac- 
tively mined foreign nickel laterite deposits. 

Significant nickel laterite deposits also exist in 
Australia, Brazil, Guatemala, India, and Indonesia. The 
total demonstrated laterite resource of these countries is 
274 million tons. The contained potentially recoverable 
cobalt amounts to 176.2 million lb, 4.5 pet of the total 
studied amount. The dominant source for these resources is 



the weathering of ultramafic complexes, producing 
deposits 5 to 30 m thick. 

PRIMARY COBALT SULFIDE AND ARSENIDE 
DEPOSITS 

Three primary cobalt deposits, consisting of sulfide 
and arsenide mineralization, comprise less than 3 pet of the 
total cobalt resource evaluated in this study. The proper- 
ties are Bou Azzer Mine in Morocco and Madison and 
Blackbird in the United States. At the Bou Azzer Mine, 
cobalt mineralization occurs in hydro thermal veins 
associated with Precambrian diorites and serpen tinites. 
Ore averages 1.25 pet cobalt; the principal cobalt mineral is 
skutterudite. 

Cobalt and nickel mineralization is present in associa- 
tion with lead as replacement in solution-collapse struc- 
tures at the Madison deposit in southeastern Missouri (fig. 
7). The principal cobalt mineral is siegenite, but cobalt is 
also found in chalcopyrite, sphalerite, galena, and millerite. 

Cobalt also occurs in a schistose copper-cobalt sulfide 
zone at the Blackbird deposit in Idaho, a metasedimentary 
syngenetic ore body (fig. 7). Cobalt mineralization consists 
of chalcopyrite and cobaltite having a copper grade of 1.1 to 
1.4 pet and a cobalt grade of 0.5 to 0.7 pet. 



16 



MINING OF COBALT-BEARING DEPOSITS 



Included in the study are 53 operating mines; 19 utilize 
surface mining methods, 25 utilize underground methods, 
and 9 use a combination of surface and underground 
methods. A brief summary of mining methods is presented 
below. 



STRATABOUND COBALT-COPPER DEPOSTS 

Recovery of cobalt from the stratabound deposits is ac- 
complished using both surface and underground mining 
methods. Because these deposits generally consist of 
sulfide and oxide ore zones, which require separate process- 
ing methods, selectivity in the method is required. Both 
surface and underground mining methods use drilling, 
blasting, loading, and hauling to recover the ore. The 
typical underground mining method employed in the 
deposits of Zambia and Zaire is sublevel open stoping. 



NICKEL LATERITE DEPOSITS 

Laterite deposits containing cobalt are typically mined 
by surface methods. Owing to the unconsolidated nature of 
laterite ore and the relatively shallow nature of laterite 
deposits, mining is relatively simple, although the clearing, 
grubbing, and roadbuilding are often very difficult in 
tropical and subtropical environments. Mining of the ore 
entails the cutting of loading benches at specified horizon- 
tal intervals across the ore body and along the contours of 
the saprolite ore, which contains the highest nickel and 
cobalt values. Mining equipment used in this type of opera- 
tion includes scrapers, small draglines, hydraulic shovels, 
front end loaders, backhoes, and trucks. Combinations of 
this equipment are used in removing the overburden and 
mining the ore. Because of the mineralogical zonation of the 
laterite deposits and the effects of certain minerals on pro- 
cessing, ore zones are sometimes mined selectively. 



MAGMATIC COBALT-NICKEL DEPOSITS 

Magmatic cobalt-bearing sulfide ores can be recovered 
by underground or surface mining methods. The currently 
producing mines use a variety of underground methods 
which are specifically advantageous to particular ore 
bodies. Mining methods include undercut and fill, large- 
diameter underground blasthole mining, and vertical crater 
retreat. Several variations and innovations within these 
methods are currently being conducted in Canadian mines. 



PRIMARY COBALT AND ARSENIDE DEPOSITS 

In 1983, there were no mines recovering cobalt as the 
primary commodity. However, Bou Azzer Mine in Moroc- 
co, which closed in 1982, recovered cobalt as a primary 
commodity, utilizing selective underground mining 
methods. Primary cobalt deposits would be mined similarly 
to the magmatic sulfide deposits. 



COBALT RECOVERY PROCESSES 



Processing techniques for cobalt recovery generally 
vary with mineralization. A summary of processing as it 
relates to the mineralization is presented in the following 
pages. In most cases, the recovery technology is based on 
the recovery of a primary commodity (e.g., copper, nickel, 
or platinum), with cobalt often only separated in the refin- 
ing stages. 



COPPER COBALT-BEARING OXIDES AND 
SULFIDES 

The oxide and sulfide ores from stratabound deposits 
are often directed to different circuits within each mill. The 
ores are then processed by crushing, grinding, and flota- 
tion. Ores containing both oxide and sulfide minerals are 
processed by selective flotation. In general, three types of 
concentrates are recovered: an oxide concentrate, a dolo- 
mitic concentrate, and a sulfide concentrate. 

Smelters and refineries employ roasting, leaching, and 
electrowinning to recover the primary commodity and 
cobalt from the concentrates 123). The following describes 
processing at Zaire's Luilu refinery, the world's largest 
cobalt smelter-refinery (fig. 10). 

Sulfide concentrate, containing 40 pet copper and 3.5 
pet cobalt, is roasted to sulfate. Oxide concentrates, with 
23 pet copper and 2.3 pet cobalt, and dolomitic concentrate, 



containing 20.7 pet copper and 1.2 pet cobalt, are mixed 
with the sulfate concentrate to form a concentrate for 
sulfuric acid leaching. Leaching and electrolytic decopper- 
ing processes recover 98 pet of the copper. The purified 
electrolyte solution, rich in cobalt (25 to 35 g/L), is then pro- 
cessed by the addition of slaked lime to precipitate cobalt 
hydroxide. After the cobalt hydroxide is redissolved in 
sulfuric acid, an electrolytic process is employed to produce 
99.9-pct-pure cobalt. The cobalt metal is crushed, vacuum 
degassed, polished, packed, and shipped by rail to Lubum- 
bashi for export. Similar techniques are employed at other 
smelters and refineries. 



NICKEL COBALT-BEARING SULFIDES 

The vast majority of ores from nickel cobalt -bearing 
sulfide deposits are concentrated by crushing, grinding, 
and flotation. Two concentrates are generally produced: a 
copper concentrate and a nickel concentrate. These concen- 
trates are sent to a smelter and/or refinery for further pro- 
cessing. Processing of concentrates conducted at the 
smelter or refinery is exemplified by Inco's Copper Cliff 
smelter in Ontario, Canada, as described below (fig. 11). 

Copper concentrate, which contains approximately 30 
pet copper and 9 pet nickel, is dried in Inco-designed fluid- 
ized bed units. No cobalt is recovered from these copper 



17 



WESTERN DISTRICT 



> 



a r 



CENTRAL DISTRICT 



Mashamba 

Dikuluwe 

open pit mine 



Kov 
open pit mine 




Kamoto 
underground mine 




Mutoshi 

Rume 

open pit mine 



Kakanda- 

Diselle 

underground 

mine 



Luilu smelter 






Panda 
electric furnace 




Leaching — - 



:: i: 



Shituru smelter 



Electrolysis 



Roasting 





Electrolysis 




Leaching —- Roasting 



Kambove 
underground mine 





Electrolysis 




Lubumbashi 
smelter 




( Blister A 



Figure 10.— Diagram of major recovery stages and key processing facilities for Zaire copper deposits. 



18 



Mystery 
Lake 



Birchtree 



Thompson 



Pipe 
Under- 
ground 



Soab 



Sheban- 
dowan 



Pipe 
Surface 



McCreedy 
West 



Levack 



Clarabelle 



Totten 



Copper 
Cliff 
South 



Garson 



Copper 
Cliff 
North 



Crean Hill 



Little 
Stobie 



Creighton 




Frood 



Stobie 




Thompson mill 
18.400 tpd 



Shebandowan mill 
2.000 tpd 



Levack mill 
8,000 tpd 




Clarabell mill 
30,000 tpd 



Frood-Stobie mill 
20,000 tpd 





Copper Cliff mill 
14,000 tpd 



Thompson smelter 

54,000 tpy 
at 60-70 pet of 
design capacity 




Copper Cliff smelter 

Design cap. 181,000 tpy 
Op. cap. 127,000 tpy 





Thompson refinery 
34,000 tpy 





Copper Cliff 
nickel refinery 

57,000 tpy 




Copper Cliff refinery 





Figure 11.— Diagram of major recovery stages and key processing facilities for Inco operations at Sudbury, Canada. 



19 



concentrates. Nickel concentrate, which contains cobalt, is 
roasted to reduce sulfur content from 22 pet to 2.5 pet and 
then conveyed to reverberatory furnaces. Liquid matte is 
tapped from the reverberatory furnaces at a temperature of 
1,150°C and further processed in Pierce-Smith converters 
for production of a converter matte containing approx- 
imately 50 pet nickel, 26 pet copper, 22 pet sulfur, and 2 pet 
cobalt. The converter matte is then cooled, crushed, and 
separated into magnetic and nonmagnetic portions at a 
matte separation plant. The magnetic portion, containing 
nickel, platinum-group metals, and cobalt, is sent to the 
Copper Cliff nickel refinery for recovery of nickel by electro- 
lysis. Following nickel electrolysis, cobalt in the electrolyte 
is precipitated as cobalt hydroxide. Cobalt hydroxide is 
redissovled, and the solution is treated to remove iron. 
Cobalt is then reprecipitated before being calcined to an 
oxide in an electrically heated rotating kiln. The resulting 
cobalt oxide is leached with water to remove sulfates. The 
nonmagnetic portion of the matte, which contain about 1 
pet nickel, is filtered and shipped to the Clydach refinery in 
Wales. 

The Copper Cliff matte separation plant also produces 
nickel oxide, which is shipped to Inco's Port Colborne 
refinery in Ontario, Canada. The major technological steps 
for recovery of cobalt at the Port Colborne refinery include 
the casting of nickel sulfide anodes containing cobalt, the 
dissolution of nickel and cobalt in an electrolyte solution, 
and the recovery and refining of cobalt from the solution. A 
variation of this processing is conducted by the Falcon- 
bridge operations in Norway (fig. 12). 



Strathcona 



Lockerby 



Falconbridge 
East 



Onaping 



Falconbridge 




Ore from the mines is processed in the Strathcona and 
Falconbridge mills, which produce nickel and copper con- 
centrates containing cobalt for the Falconbridge smelter. 
Crushed ore first undergoes magnetic separation. The 
resulting magnetic fraction is charged directly to the blast 
furnace or converter, while the nonmagnetic fraction is fur- 
ther processed to yield a nickel-copper concentrate and a 
pyrrhotite concentrate. The nickel-copper concentrate is 
pelletized and sintered before being charged to the blast 
furnace. The molten matte is then processed in a converter 
to produce the nickel-copper matte, which is shipped to 
Kristiansand, Norway, for final refining. The nickel and 
copper are separated by roasting and leaching. The oxi- 
dized matte containing the nickel and cobalt is processed to 
recover nickel metal through electrolysis and cobalt 
through precipitation and acid treatment. 



NICKEL-COBALT LATERITES 

In some laterite operations, preconcentration is carried 
out by passing the ore through rotating tommels, which 
break the weathered nickel silicate rock, while the un- 
broken, unweathered rock is discharged out the end of the 
tommel. The finer portion passes through the trommel as 
ore. In some instances, oversize from the trommel is 
crushed and recycled to improve recovery and to provide 
crushed rock for road surfaces. In the majority of cases, the 
laterite beneficiation consists only of crushing and drying. 
Laterite ores usually contain 16 to 27 pet moisture. This 
moisture is often reduced before leaching, smelting, or 
refining begins. The drying step can be a major component 
in the cost of nickel and cobalt recovery from a laterite 
deposit due to the high cost and high consumption of fuel. 

Laterites pose particular problems for the recovery of 
nickel and cobalt owing to complex mineralogy. Pyrometal- 
lugical or hydrometallurgical processes are used. The main 
relationships between ore type process and cobalt recovery 
are shown in table 10. The four major techniques currently 
in commercial application include (1) matte smelting, 

(2) electric or blast furnace reduction to ferronickel, 

(3) sulfuric acid leaching at high temperature and pressure, 
and (4) reductive roast and/or ammonia leach. 

There are major drawbacks with all four main pro- 
cesses currently in use. In the case of the hydromet- 
tallurgical processes, only specific feed compositions may 
be successfully and economically treated, while the 
pyrometallurgical processes are characterized by relatively 
high energy consumption. However, two new techniques 
(the new Caron process and the AMAX acid leach process) 
have recently been developed to improve recovery of cobalt 
from hydrometallurgical processes. 



TABLE 10.— Nickel laterite process comparison 



Process 



Ore type 



Cobalt 

recovery, 

pet 



Figure 12.— Diagram of major recovery stages and key 
processing facilities for Falconbridge operations. 



Pyrometallurgical: 

Smelting to matte Blended limonite 

and garnierite. 
Reduction to ferronickel do 

Hydrometallurgical: 
Reduction roast 

ammonia leach Limonite 

Sulfuric acid leach do 

'No Cobalt is recovered as a separate product. 



20-25 



40-50 
85-90 



20 



Pyrometallurgical Processes 

In general, pyrometalurgy is used to treat high-grade 
garnieritic ores with low iron-high magnesia in the presence 
of suitable slag-forming minerals. Nickel recoveries of 
about 95 pet are typically achieved through pyrometal- 
lurgical methods. Two types of pyrometallurgical processes 
are used to recover nickel and sometimes cobalt from 
laterites: direct reduction of the laterite to a ferronickel 
product (containing 20 to 50 pet nickel), and smelting the 
laterite in the presence of sulfur in order to produce a nickel 
sulfide matte (containing about 75 pet nickel). In the case of 
ferronickel production, the cobalt is not recovered. 

The recovery of cobalt in a nickel sulfide matte is possi- 
ble at properties where the cobalt content is greater than 
0.04 pet and the iron content is low, such as at the Falcon- 
bridge operation in Canada. Matte smelting, carried out at 
temperatures greater than 1,350° C, entails melting the 
charge in the presence of coke (for reduction) and a sulfur 
source. Matte smelting is used because nickel has a greater 
affinity for sulfur than does iron, while iron has a greater af- 
finity for oxygen than does nickel. Thus, the product of this 
technique is a nickel sulfide matte, with iron present in an 
oxide slag. After removal of a slag layer, the iron is remov- 
ed by air injection in converters. The product is an enriched 
matte containing nickel and cobalt, which is subsequently 
calcined to the oxide form, cast into an anode, and further 
processed by electrolysis to produce high-grade nickel and 
cobalt products. 

Hydro-metallurgical Processes 

High-iron limonitic ores are processed by hydrometal- 
lurgical methods that can isolate the high iron content, 
thus preventing product contamination. Hydrometallurgi- 
cal processes consist of variations of the reduction roast- 
ammonia leach process or the sulfuric acid leach process. 
The basic reduction roast-ammonia leach process includes 
drying, grinding, selective reduction in multiple-hearth 
roasters, ammonium carbonate leaching, separation of 
cobalt by solvent extraction, distillation to basic nickel car- 
bonate, and calcining to produce nickel oxide. This process 
is utilized in Australia (Greenvale) and the Philippines 
(Marinduque). Smaller plants are starting up in India and 
Brazil where cobalt will be recovered. Nickel recoveries are 
quite low, about 60 to 65 pet, and because an additional 9 to 
15 pet of nickel is recovered with cobalt as a nickel -cobalt 
sulfide, further refining is required to separate the nickel 
and cobalt (25). 



Improvements on the reduction roast-ammonia leach 
process have recently been developed to increase cobalt 
recovery. The Universal Oil Products Co. (UOP) has 
developed a modification of the Caron process that uses ad- 
ditives in the reductive roast step to increase nickel 
recovery. The UOP additives, sulfur and halogen forms, 
make the ore more amenable to ammonia leaching. 

The Bureau has modified the basic process to improve 
the recovery of nickel and cobalt by adding a crushed pyrite 
mixture before drying. This process, the USBM reduction 
roast ammoniacal leach (USBMRRAL), yields recoveries of 
about 90 pet for nickel and 85 pet for cobalt. After drying, 
the mixture enters the multiple-hearth roasting unit for 
reduction. The reduction of the laterite takes place at ap- 
proximately 500° C in the presence of a heated pure carbon 
monoxide atmosphere. The discharge from the multiple- 
hearth unit is cooled, then mixed with an oxidizing am- 
monium hydroxide-ammonium sulfate leach solution. The 
leach solution dissolves the metals and some impurities 
contained in the reduced laterite. Cobalt and nickel are 
separated by solvent extration, then recovered by elec- 
trowinning {24). 

A sulfuric acid leach process is generally applicable 
only to low-magnesia ores (i.e., those of the limonite zone). 
Under these conditions, acid consumption is minimized. 
The importance of this process lies in the high cobalt 
recoveries that can be achieved. AM AX proposes to em- 
ploy this process for the New Caledonia COFREMI opera- 
tion to recover nickel and cobalt from higher magnesia ores. 
Ore is slurried and pumped to leaching towers, where it is 
contacted with sulfuric acid at temperatures of 200° to 250° 
C under pressure of more than 500 psi. Nickel, cobalt, and 
magnesium are dissolved, while the iron is hydrolyzed. The 
solids are then separated, and nickel and cobalt are 
recovered from solution by hydrogen sulfide precipitation. 
Nickel and cobalt are subsequently refined individually by 
electrowining. The recoveries achieved are 90 to 95 pet for 
nickel and 85 to 90 pet for cobalt. 



PRIMARY COBALT SULFIDE AND ARSENIDE 
DEPOSITS 

The Bou Azzer Mine in Morocco, which recently closed 
operations, processed ore by gravity separation and flota- 
tion to produce a cobalt concentrate. The concentrate was 
then roasted, leached, and refined by electrolysis to pro- 
duce cathode cobalt, reduced by roasting to produce cobalt 
powder, or calcined to produce cobalt oxide. 



CAPITAL AND OPERATING COSTS 



The wide variation in mining and processing methods 
used to recover cobalt is reflected in the range of capital 
and operating costs associated with that recovery. For each 
property in this study, an analysis was made of the capital 
and operating cost associated with the actual or proposed 
development of each deposit. The following sections sum- 
marize this analysis. 



CAPITAL COSTS 

Table 1 1 identifies the typical proposed capital expen- 
diture range for deposits that are currently nonproducing. 



Producing deposits were not included because, in most 
cases, their investments have already been appreciated and 
new capital expenditures are limited to replacement of the 
facilities and expansion. 

Capital investments include expenditures for property 
development, construction of mine and mill plant, purchase 
of mobile and stationary equipment, and working capital. 
Exploration and acquisition costs are now shown in the 
table; smelter and refining costs are presented where ap- 
plicable. All costs are converted from currency of the coun- 
try, with appropriate exchange rates, into January 1981 
U.S. dollars. 

The mine capital costs for development of sulfide 



21 



TABLE 11.— Typical mine and mill capital costs for 

undeveloped nickel deposits per annual ton ore mined 

(January 1981 dollars) 



Mining 












annual 


Ore 


Mining 


Mine 


Mill 


Postmill 


capacity 


type 


method 


capital 


capital 


capital 


10" tons 






cost 


cost 


cost 



5-14 Sulfide Surface $4.2-$13.7 $7.2-$10.1 (') 

.9*8 do Underground 10.1-39.3 8.4-11.6 (') 

.9-3.8 Laterite Surface 6.2-48.8 (') $77.8-$288.6 

'Postmill costs in analysis were treated as a custom charge. 
'Mill and postmill capital costs are combined. There is little beneficiation of 
lateritic ores. 

deposits range from $4.20 to $39.30 per annual ton of min- 
ed ore capacity. The lower cost reflects open pit operations 

of 14,300 to 40,000 tons per day. The higher cost reflects 
underground mining operations ranging from 3,700 to 
27,500 tons per day. In general, the costs reflect an 
economy of scale. The mill costs for the sulfide ores ranged 
from $7.20 to $11.60 per annual ton, with the higher 
throughput tonnages obtaining the lower costs. 

For laterite deposits, the mine capital costs range from 
$6.20 to $48.80 per annual ton of throughput. This higher 
cost reflects, in most cases, the higher cost of development, 
clearing, etc., in the Pacific Island areas. Laterite ores are 
not often preconcentrated; thus, the entire mined tonnage 
is processed. In addition, the remoteness of many of the 
sites from equipment manufacturers and the necessity for 
large infrastructure expenditures in some undeveloped 
areas are reflected in the wide range of total capital cost 
from $77.80 to $288.60 per annual ton. 



OPERATING COSTS 

Approximately 97 pet of the cobalt is recovered as a 
byproduct from nickel and copper properties. Typical 



operating costs ranges by major ore type for these proper- 
ties are shown in table 12. The operating cost for cobalt 
recovery is not separated from the operating cost for 
recovery of the nickel or copper, since the cobalt remains 
with the primary commodity through most of the process- 
ing steps. Operating costs are presented for 75 of the 90 
copper and nickel properties. The 15 properties that are not 
included reflect unique site variations not reflective of 
typical operations. Table 13 shows weighted average 
operating cost estimates by mining type and country. 
Operating costs include the cost of mining, milling, 
smelting, and refining and all transportation up to refining. 
The mine and mill operating costs include labor, utilities, 
supplies, and the indirect costs of administration, 
maintenance, etc. These costs as presented do not include 
depreciation, interest on investments, profit, etc. All 
smelter and refinery costs are assumed to be on a custom 
charge basis. 

Transportation costs, included in the "Miscellaneous 
other" category vary widely, depending on distance and 
mode. Rail and truck are common methods for transporta- 
tion of concentrates to smelters and refiners within each 
country. Countries like the Philippines and New Caledonia 
depend on ocean transport for shipping of concentrates 
and/or partially treated ore to Japan for further processing. 
The transportation charges include all costs from receipt on 
the shipping pier to delivery at smelting faculties. The 
estimated transportation costs do not include tariffs or 
custom broker charges. 

Copper Sulfide and Oxide Deposits 

Included in the cost analysis are 15 copper deposits, 13 
producing and 2 nonproducing properties, having total pro- 
duction costs ranging from $16 to $74 per ton of ore 
processed. 

Producing mines in Finland have total operating costs 
of $42 to $74 per ton of processed ore. The various under- 
ground mining methods incur a mining cost of $14 to $21. 
Milling costs are $7 to $8 per ton of ore. Smelting and refin- 
ing costs are dependent upon the cost of byproduct 



TABLE 12.— Range of estimated operating costs for copper and nickel properties 

(1981 dollars per ton of ore processed) 



Weighted 

Number of Mine Miscellaneous Total average 

Coun try properties Status' type' Mine Mill Processing' Othe r' cost total cost 5 

COPPER SULFIDE 

Finland 3 P U 14-21 7-8 12-39 2-8 42-74 51 

Zaire 2 P U < 33 <12 < 23 <5 < 68 67 

Do 4 P S 5-19 4-14 6-22 1-3 16-50 44 

Zambia 4 P S,U 12-31 6-13 9-17 .03-1.3 31-62 35 

Others 2 N S^J <12 < 7 <12 <1.3 < 30 NAp 

NICKEL SULFIDE 

Canada 14 P U 17-37 3-12 17-63 0.12-15 56-113 77 

Do 6 N U 24-32 3-6 17-32 .04-2 54-65 58 

Do....... 5 N,P S 11-29 2-5 19-36 .08-2.26 38-70 40 

United States 8 N U 10-12 3-5 5-6 2-3 22-23 23 

Do 5 N S 3-10 3-5 4-10 2-3 12-26 16 

Zimbabwe ... 3 P U 13-27 2-5 23-39 .06-1 46-69 59 

Others 2 N^P SJJ 26 7 36 2 67 NAp 

NICKEL LATERITES 

New Caledonia 6 P S 16-21 6 M38-162 25-40 187-212 195 

Do 5 N S 7 3-8 94-126 7-8 114-141 118 

Others 6 NLP S 2-13 34 10-99 0-21 52-132 NAp 

NAp Not applicable. 'P— Producing; N— Nonproducing. 2 U— Underground; S— Surface. Processing cost inlcudes smelting and refining costs. 
"Includes tranportation and miscellaneous. 5 Average cost weighted by in situ resource tonnage, includes leaching cost for ferronickel. 



22 



TABLE 13.— Weighted estimated average operating costs for copper and nickel properties 

(1981 dollars per ton of ore procesed) 



Country 


Status' 


Mine 
type 2 


Mine 


Mill 


Processing 


Miscellaneous 
Other 


Total 


Country 
average 


COPPER SULFIDE 


Finland 

Zaire 


P 

P 


U 
U 
S 

s,u 


16.45 
32.47 
13.67 
13.53 


7.59 

11.52 

8.42 

7.41 


21.76 
22.13 
19.91 
13.43 


4.84 
.87 

1.70 
.34 


50.64 
66.99 j 
43.70 I 
34.71 


50.64 


Do 

Zambia 


P 

P 


50.09 
34.71 














NICKEL SULFIDE 











Canada .... 

Do 

Do 

United States 

Do 

Zimbabwe . . 

/ Calec 
o . . . . 
ippine; 

'P— Producing; N — Nonproducing 



P 
N 

N,P 
N 
N 
P 



27.92 
30.12 
14.82 
11.62 
5.20 
22.63 



4.91 
5.07 
3.71 
3.14 
2.85 
2.60 



41.38 
21.90 
20.47 
5.26 
4.90 
33.37 



2.59 
.79 
1.17 
2.61 
1.95 
.87 



.80 \ 

.88 > 

.17 J 



76.80 

57 

40 

22.63 

14.90 

59.47 



67.08 

19.69 
59.47 



NICKEL LATERITES 


New Caledonia 


P 


s 

S 
S 


17.93 5.50 
6.00 7.32 
3.68 5.42 


138.48 
98.00 
87.12 


33.48 

7.05 

14.53 


195.39 j 
118.37 ) 
110.75 




Do 

Philippines 


N 
N,P 


135.50 
110.75 



2 U — Underground; S — Surface 



recovery and range from $12 to $39 per ton of ore. One pro- 
ducer recovering gold, silver, and zinc as byproducts incurs 
the high processing cost of $39 per ton of ore. 

In Zaire, mining costs range from $5 to $33 per ton. 
The open pit operations of Mutoshi Ruwe, Dikuluwe, and 
Kov are between $5 and $19 per ton of ore. Underground 
operations like Kambove Kamoto and Kakanda, employing 
sublevel stoping and other fill mining methods, have higher 
mining costs of up to $33. Milling costs range from $4 to 
$14 per ton of ore. Processing costs for recovery of copper 
and cobalt range from $6 to $23. 

Total operating costs in Zambia range from $31 to $62 
per ton, with a mining cost from $12 to $31 and milling cost 
of $6 to $13. Operations in the Rokana and Chingoia divi- 
sions, which utilize many different mining methods, have 
mining costs of $12 to $14 per ton and milling costs of $7 to 
$8. The low costs are due to efficient usage of mining equip- 
ment and economy of scale in milling. Processing costs of 
$9 to $17 per ton are for copper and cobalt recovery and do 
not include any other byproducts. The two undeveloped 
deposits identified in table 12 as "Others" have relatively 
low mining and millin g costs. One deposit recovers gold, 
silver, and zinc in addition to copper and cobalt. Total 
operating cost is less than $30 per ton of ore. 

Comparison of the copper-cobalt operations indicates 
that Zambia has the lowest weighted average operating 
cost— about $9 per ton less than the surface operations of 
Zaire, and about $15 to $32 less than the predominantly 
underground operations of Zaire and Finland. This lower 
cost, however, is offset by the lower copper-cobalt grades in 
Zambia over Zaire, as shown in table 5. 

Nickel Sulfide Deposits 

There were 43 nickel sulfide deposits analyzed in this 
study, 22 producing and 21 nonproducing. The total 
operating costs of the deposits evaluated range from $12 to 
$113 per ton of ore processed. 

In Canada, the mining costs range from $11 to $37 per 
ton. Underground mines using cut and fill mining methods 
account for the higher mine operating costs. Open pit min- 
ing costs range from $11 to $29. Milling costs for operating 
properties range from $2 to $12 per ton of ore. The higher 



end of the processing cost range reflects the cost of 
recovery of numerous valuable byproducts such as gold, 
silver, and platinum-group metals. 

Undeveloped deposits in the United States, located in 
Alaska and Minnesota, have a total operating cost range of 
$12 to $26 per ton of processed ore. Mining costs range 
from $3 to $12. Mill operating costs are $3 to $5, and pro- 
cessing costs are $4 to $10 per ton of ore processed. 

Producing mines in Zimbabwe have unit costs from 
$46 to $69 per ton of ore. Inclined cut and fill and sublevel 
mining methods result in mine operating costs between $13 
and $27. The low milling cost of $2 to $5 is due to low 
wages for local employees. The highest value in the process- 
ing cost range is the result of recovering platinum at one 
deposit. 

Comparison of the nickel sulfide operations indicates 
that U.S. properties have the lowest operating cost per ton. 
This is due to the very low grade of these deposits, which 
would necessitate high-capacity operations. The Canadian 
properties have the highest cost per ton of ore, but this will 
be offset by the higher grades of nickel for its properties 
compared with those of Zimbabwe and the United States, 
as shown in table 5. 

Nickel Laterite Deposits 

The 17 nickel laterite deposits, 9 producing and 8 
undeveloped properties, have been included in this study. 
Total operating costs range from $52 to $212 per ton of pro- 
cessed ore. Laterite deposits are usually mined by surface 
methods. Comparing the operating costs of different 
laterite properties, the most important factors deterniining 
the total cost are the stripping ratios and the amount of 
blending and selective mining necessary to maximize the 
nickel and cobalt recovery. 

Relatively high total operating costs with a weighted 
average of $135.50 for New Caledonia and $110.75 for the 
Philippines result from the fact that laterites are typically 
not concentrated prior to smelting. Lateritic ore is not 
amenable to upgrading by conventional beneficiation tech- 
niques; where beneficiation occurs at all, it typically in- 
cludes only drying and screening. The costs are generally 
less than $8 except for one operation where the drying cost 



23 



at the mill site increases the mill operating cost to $34 per 
ton while reducing smelter and refining costs. Mine 
operating costs range from $2 to $21 per ton of ore. The 
processing costs range from $10 to $162, including costs 
for drying prior to smelting. The New Caledonia processing 
costs include separation of the ore designated for ferro- 
nickel production (60 pet) and for nickel sulfide matte pro- 
duction (40 pet). 

Comparison of Operating Costs for Sulfide and 
Laterite Deposits 

Copper sulfide deposits typically have an average total 
operating cost slightly less than those of nickel sulfide 
operations, excluding the low-grade U.S. properties ($50 
versus $59 to $67). In addition, there is a clear difference 
between the operating costs associated with nickel sulfide 
and lateritic ores. The mine operating cost of nickel laterite 



ore is $2 to $21 per ton versus $3 to $37 for the nickel 
sulfide ores. This difference in mining costs occurs because 
the sulfide ores are mined almost entirely by underground 
methods, generally using cut and fill or other modified 
stoping techniques. Although some underground sulfide 
operations, mainly those in Canada, are now highly mech- 
anized, the associated mine operating costs are relatively 
high due to the depth and high development costs for ore 
occurring in numerous narrow shoots and veins. Lateritic 
nickel deposits are mostly mined by surface cut methods. 
In the case of nickel laterite deposits, the ore normally 
requires a large amount of energy for drying before nickel 
processing begins, thus causing laterite deposits to have a 
higher processing cost than nickel sulfide deposits. Trans- 
portation cost for the solar-dried laterite ore to processing 
plants in Japan is another reason for the high nickel laterite 
total operating cost. 



POTENTIAL COBALT AVAILABILITY 



The potentially recoverable cobalt resources from 
market economy countries are best illustrated by availabil- 
ity curves. These curves indicate the cost of production 
related to the amount of the commodity that can be re- 
covered. The cost of production used in these analyses in- 
cludes all costs through smelting and refining (f.o.b. 
smelter and/or refiner) and a 15-pct rate of return on in- 
vested capital. Two types of analysies were used to 
generate the curves illustrating cobalt availability. 

In the first analysis, recoverable cobalt is related to the 
cobalt cost of production using 1981 representative prices 
for other commodities. Results of this analysis are illus- 
trated in figure 13. This analysis indicates that the 
revenues derived from the production of copper, nickel, 
platinum, or other commodities are sufficient to totally 
cover the cost to recover 589 million lb of cobalt (available 
over the life of the properties). This cobalt can be produced 
at any cobalt market price if the other commodities can be 
sold at their 1981 representative market prices. A total of 
1,330 million lb of cobalt is available at a cost of production 
of $7/lb cobalt. Most of this cobalt is from copper and nickel 




500 1,000 1,500 

TOTAL RECOVERABLE COBALT, I0 6 lb 



2,000 



Figure 13.— Total cobalt potentially available at total 
production costs less than $25/lb cobalt. 



properties, with less than 3 pet from primary cobalt and 
platinum deposits. The cost to recover additional cobalt 
above 1,330 million lb increases rapidly. At a total cost of 
production of $25/lb cobalt, 1,953 million lb of cobalt is 
potentially available over the life of the properties. Thus, 
for the 97 deposits studied, about half of the recoverable 
cobalt requires a total cost of production greater than 
$25/lb. The highest cost tonnages typically reflect nickel 
laterite deposits in which the cobalt grade and recovery are 
low. These low-grade deposits produce correspondingly 
smaller amounts of cobalt, which increases the burden of 
the total cost per pound of recovered cobalt. 

The second analysis determines the cost-production 
relationship for the primary commodity at various cost 
levels using 1981 representative prices for cobalt and other 
byproduct commodities. Figure 14 presents the results of 
this analysis for properties where copper is the primary 
commodity. At different production costs for copper, the 
graph indicates the total amount of primary copper and 
byproduct cobalt that would be available over the life of the 
17 copper-cobalt oxide and sulfide properties. For example, 
at a total copper production cost of $0.89/lb and a cobalt 
revenue based on $7/lb recovered cobalt, 22.9 million tons 
of copper and 1,105 million lb of byproduct cobalt would be 
available. At this cost of production, almost 65 pet of the 
total recoverable cobalt from the 17 copper properties is 
potentially available. At a higher total cost of production in 
the range of $0.89 to $1.38/lb copper, an additional 16 pet of 
the total recoverable cobalt from copper deposits is avail- 
able. These are from 1981 copper producers that were 
marginal operations. The remaining 19 pet of the total 
recoverable cobalt is from nonproducing copper properties 
that have a cost of production range of $1.38 to $2.83/lb 
copper. 

Figure 15 is a compilation of the 73 nickel deposits 
analyzed in the study with all byproduct prices at represen- 
tative 1981 trend levels. At a nickel cost of production of 
$3.45/lb and a cobalt revenue based on $7/lb recovered 
cobalt, 8.2 million tons of nickel as a primary commodity 
and 190 million lb of byproduct cobalt would be potentially 
available. At this cost of production, only 9 pet of the total 
recoverable cobalt from the 73 nickel deposits is potentially 



24 



3 00 




8 12 16 20 24 28 

TOTAL RECOVERABLE COPPER, lO^tons 



250 500 750 1,000 1,250 1,500 

TOTAL RECOVERABLE COBALT, I0 6 lb 



Figure 14.— Total copper and byproduct cobalt potentially available from copper-cobalt deposits at various copper total 
production costs. 




I0 I5 20 25 30 

TOTAL RECOVERABLE NICKEL, l0 6 tons 



500 750 1,000 1,250 1,500 1,750 2,000 2,250 

TOTAL RECOVERABLE COBALT, I0 6 lb 



Figure 15.— Total nickel and byproduct cobalt potentially available from nickel-cobalt deposits at various nickel total 
production costs. 



available. Over 78 pet of this available cobalt is from nickel 
sulfide deposits, consisting of 17 producers and 5 nonpro- 
ducers. The nonproducers have not been developed princi- 
pally because of sluggish nickel demand since 1981. At a 
higher total cost of production in the range of $3.50 to $6/lb 
nickel, an additional 530 million lb of byproduct cobalt is 
potentially available. Over 80 percent of this available 
cobalt is from nickel laterite deposits, 13 producers and 2 
nonproducers. Thus, many of the nickel laterite producers 
in 1981 were marginal operations. 

The remaining two-thirds of the recoverable cobalt ton- 
nage from nickel deposits, 1,370 million pounds, can only 
be produced at a total cost of production of $6 to $9.21/lb 
nickel. Ninety percent of this cobalt is from nickel laterite 
deposits, all of which are nonproducers. 

The four evaluated platinum properties would yield 29 
million lb of cobalt at a platinum production cost of $475/tr 
oz and cobalt at $7/lb. The three primary cobalt properties 
studied provide a potential 6 million lb of cobalt at a cost of 
less than $7/lb cobalt. 

In summary, of the 1,330 million lb of cobalt that is 
available, if all commodities can be produced and sold at 
their 1981 representative market prices, copper-cobalt 



properties account for 83 pet, nickel-cobalt sulfide proper- 
ties for 11 pet, nickel laterite properties for 3 pet, and 
platinum and primary cobalt properties for less than 3 pet. 
The above amount is available from 27 producing deposits 
(7 copper, 17 nickel sulfide, 2 platinum, and lprimary) and 7 
undeveloped deposits (1 copper, 5 nickel sulfide, and 1 
nickel laterite). The producing mines would contribute 
1,255 million lb, while the undeveloped deposits account for 
75 million lb of potential cobalt production. To obtain the 
entire 3,925 million lb of potentially recoverable cobalt at 
an average total cost of $7/lb cobalt, the copper properties 
would require a long-term copper market price of up to 
$2.83/lb and the nickel properties would require a market 
price of up to $9.21/lb. 

Cobalt availability was assessed from the major pro- 
ducing areas, Canada, New Caledonia, the Philippines, 
Zaire, and Zambia. In Canada, a total of 161 million lb of 
cobalt, 4.1 pet of the world total, is available from 18 pro- 
ducing and 9 undeveloped nickel sulfide deposits at a max- 
imum nickel production cost of $6.17/lb (fig. 16). The pro- 
ducing properties account for 126 million lb of cobalt, 78 
pet of Canada's resource, while the remaining 35 million lb 
of cobalt is from undeveloped deposits. At a cost more com- 



25 




40 60 80 100 120 140 160 180 200 

TOTAL RECOVERABLE COBALT, I0 6 lb 

Figure 16.— Cobalt potentially available from Canadian nickel 
sulfide deposits at various nickel total production costs. 

parable to the current nickel market price of $3.45/lb, about 
126 million lb of cobalt can be recovered. 

The laterite resources of New Caledonia and the Philip- 
pines combined account for 1,423 million lb of recoverable 
cobalt, 36 pet of world cobalt resources. This resource is 
derived from 10 producing properties and 6 undeveloped 
deposits. The producing properties contain 179 milhon lb of 
recoverable cobalt, 13 pet of the New Caledonia and Philip- 
pines total, while undeveloped deposits made up 87 pet 
(1,244 million lb) of the total. The total resource from these 
countries can be recovered at a nickel production cost of 
$8.27/lb (fig. 17). At a nickel cost of $3.45/lb, comparable to 
1981 market prices, no cobalt is potentially available from 
these countries. Therefore, the producing mines are prob- 
ably operating at less than a 15-pct rate of return on their 
investments. 

The cobalt resources from copper oxide and sulfide 
properties of Zaire and Zambia are 1,630 million lb, 42 pet 
of the total cobalt availability. This amount is available at a 
copper cost of $2.52/lb (fig. 18). The evaluated cobalt 
resources of Zaire consist of six producing and one non- 
producing properties which contain 1,315 million lb of 
recoverable cobalt, comprising 34 pet of the world total. 
Cobalt resources of Zambia consist of four producing 
properties totaling 315 million lb of cobalt, which is 8 pet of 
the world total. These countries have 1,086 million lb of 
cobalt available at a cost of $0.89/lb of copper; 92 pet is 
from Zaire. 

In summary, Zambia and Zaire supply the largest 



1 1 


-" 1 ■ 1 

1 


-1 

f 


1 

- 1 




- 


1 1 


1 1 


1 



TOTAL RECOVERABLE COBALT, I0 6 lb 

Figure 17.— Cobalt potentially available from New Caledonia 
and Philippines nickel laterite deposits at various nickel 
total production costs. 




250 500 750 1,000 1,250 1,500 

TOTAL RECOVERABLE COBALT, I0 6 lb 



1,750 



Figure 18.— Cobalt potentially available from Zaire and 
Zambia copper deposits at various copper total production 
costs. 



amount of cobalt at existing market prices. A large amount 
of potentially available cobalt cannot be produced at a 
nickel cost of production less than $6.20/lb. At a nickel cost 
of $6.50/lb, the laterites of New Caledonia and the Philip- 
pines can potentially supply 1,036 milhon lb of cobalt. 



ANNUAL AVAILABILITY 



Availability of cobalt on an annual basis is presented 
for the studied operating nickel and copper properties 
based upon expected annual production rates. Cobalt avail- 
ability from primary cobalt or platinum deposits is not 
discussed on an annual basis because of very small re- 
sources (only 3 pet of total). In generating these curves, 
cobalt price is assumed to be $7/lb, and no expansion or in- 
crease in production is proposed. 

Figure 19 illustrates that for a total copper production 
cost of $0.89/lb, a maximum of about 44.5 milhon lb of 



cobalt is potentially available in 1984 from the producing 
copper-cobalt deposits. The copper-cobalt producing prop- 
erties consist of 13 deposits in Finland (3), Zaire (6), and 
Zambia (4). The small increase in cobalt availability from 
1981 to 1984 is based on proposed expansion of capacity at 
two properties. The availability of cobalt begins to decline 
in 1987, eventually reaching 29 milhon lb in the year 2000. 
This decline is based on a fixed resource base with no addi- 
tional resources from exploration programs. 

Annual production of cobalt from 36 producing nickel 



26 



bO 
50 




— r— i i i i i ii 


i 


40 


- 


r^^ 


- 


V) 




$089 _ 


20 
10 


- 


i i i i i i i i 


i 



1983 1985 1987 1989 



1993 1995 1997 1999 2001 



Figure 19.— Potential annual production of cobalt from 
producing copper deposits for S0.89/lb copper total 
production cost. 



■B 16 

10 

o 



- 


N 


1 1 1 

Year preproduction 
development begins 


1 I ' " - "1 1 


- 






- 




_ 






$6.00 


- 






$3.45 


i ' i i i 


till 



N N+2 N+4 N+6 N+8 N + IO N + 12 N+14 N + 16 N + 16 N + 20 

Figure 21.— Potential annual production of cobalt from 
nonproducing nickel deposits for $3.45/lb and $6/lb nickel 
total production cost. 



-\ 1 1 r 



$6.00 



$3.45 



J i i L 



1983 1985 



Figure 20.— Potential annual production of cobalt from 
producing nickel deposits for $3.45/lb and $6/lb nickel total 
production cost. 



mines is shown in figure 20. The mines include 18 in 
Canada, 8 in New Caledonia, 3 in Zimbabwe, 2 each in the 
Philippines and Australia, and 1 each in Brazil, Guatemala, 
and Botswana. In 1981, these properties could potentially 
produce 3.6 million lb of cobalt at a nickel cost of produc- 
tion of $3.45/lb, all from nickel sulfide deposits. A decrease 
of 50 pet of the 1981 production, or 1.8 million lb of recover- 
able cobalt, could occur by the year 2000. For a nickel cost 
of $6/lb, 14.9 million lb of cobalt are potentially recoverable 
in 1981, 74 pet from nickel laterite deposits. At $6/lb nickel, 
cobalt availability gradually increases to 15.5 million lb in 
1985, owing to planned expansions and some newer proper- 
ties reaching their design capacity, and then decreases to 
9.4 million lb in 2000. A commensurate 40-pct decrease in 
recoverable cobalt results between 1985 and 2000. This 
decline in availability for both the $3.45/lb and $6/lb cost of 
production levels is again due to the fixed resource 
estimate used in this analysis. 

An annual availability analysis is also presented for the 
nonproducing nickel properties. As nonproducing proper- 
ties are not tied to a specific startup or development 
schedule, it was assumed that any preproduction work 
would begin in a base year (N). These curves then illustrate 
the rriinimum startup time and maximum potential annual 
cobalt production from nonproducing deposits. 



Potential production from year N to N+20 is il- 
lustrated in figure 21 for 37 nonproducing nickel proper- 
ties. The undeveloped nickel deposits include 18 properties 
from the United States, 9 from Canada, 5 from New 
Caledonia, and 1 each from Australia, Brazil, India, In- 
donesia, and the Philippines. While some deposits were in 
various stages of preproduction development at the time of 
deposit evaluation for this study and would be producing 
before year N+4, most properties are assumed to have a 4- 
to 10-year preproduction period, which accounts for the 
large surge in potential cobalt availability in year N+4. In 
year N+4, the potential production level for cobalt is 1.7 
million lb nickel at a cost of $3.45/lb; this cobalt production 
is from one nickel laterite and five Canadian nickel sulfide 
deposits. Under the assumption that all undeveloped 
deposits began preproduction in year N, all properties 
would be producing at full capacity by year AH- 9, with a 
potential production level of 3.0 million lb at a total cost of 
production of $3.45/lb of cobalt. After year N+9 potential 
cobalt availability declines to approximately 2.6 million lb 
in year N+ 19. 

At a nickel cost of $6/lb, 6.7 million lb of cobalt would 
be available in year N+4, with almost 80 pet from nickel 
laterite properties. This value increases to 11.3 million lb in 
year N+6 to AH- 9. After year N+9 cobalt availability 
steadily declines to about 6.6 million lb in year N+20 as the 
deposit resources are depleted. 

An annual availability curve for nonproducing copper- 
cobalt deposits is not shown because of the limited number 
of properties (4) included in this study. At 1981 market 
price and assuming preproduction starts in year N, no 
cobalt is available from the properties until year N+9 when 
0.5 million lb is available each year through AH- 10. 

To assess the impact of the future potential availability 
of cobalt, a supply-demand analysis was performed (table 
14). The forecast of demand for cobalt for the year 2000 is 
based on forecast estimates by the Bureau of Mines (12). 
Short-term estimated demands of 36 million lb for 1985 and 
47 million lb for 1990 are based on data from a 1981 
publication (23, p. 44). 

At $7/lb cobalt, $3.45/lb nickel, and $0.89/lb copper, 
cobalt demand can be met in 1985 from producing copper 
and nickel mines with a surplus of 11.8 million lb. By 1990 
and beyond, if we assumed that prior production has oc- 
curred at full operating capacity each year, nickel and cop- 
per producers would be unable to satisfy cobalt demand at 



27 



TABLE 14.— Comparison of annual availability 
of cobalt with projected demand 1985-2000 

(Million pounds of recoverable cobalt) 

1981 1990 2000 

Estimated demand '36.0 '47.1 2 67.0 

Potential supply: 

Copper, producing mines 44.5 39.2 29.0 

Copper, nonproducing deposits 3 .5 .5 

Nickel, producing mines 3.3 3.0 1.8 

Nickel, nonproducing deposits 3 1.7 3.0 2.6 

Total potential supply 49.5 45.7 33.9 

Surplus or shortage 13.5 - 1.4 '33.1 

'Reference 23, p. 44. 
'Reference 4, p. 12. 

3 The cobalt availability from nonproducing properties is based on 
initiating preproduction development in 1981 with minimum startup time. 

their present production levels and therefore must rely 
upon copper nonproducers to satisfy the shortfall. If non- 
producing nickel and copper deposits were to start prepro- 



duction development in 1981, then total cobalt availability 
in 1990 from these deposits would be 3.5 million lb, or 
slightly less than the deficiency of 3.8 million lb. In the year 
2000, again with the same assumptions, the deficiency ex- 
ceeds potential production by 36.3 million lb. During this 
year at assumed production rates and commodity prices, 
only 3.1 million lb of cobalt would be available from non- 
producers to cover this deficiency. Beyond 1990, the ob- 
vious trend is for an ever-widening gap between cobalt de- 
mand and availability from the evaluated copper and nickel 
properties. This gap could be reduced by the expansion of 
production at properties included in this study, new dis- 
coveries, additional resource at existing mines, or increases 
in both the primary and byproduct cobalt market prices. 

Additional cobalt could be available from producing 
and undeveloped nickel deposits at a higher nickel price of 
$6/lb. If all nickel deposits that can produce at $6/lb were to 
be developed, then an additional 19.1 million and 11.6 
million lb of cobalt would be available in 1990 and 2000, 
respectively. 



IMPACT OF COBALT PRICE ON COBALT AVAILABILITY 



The cobalt availability analysis discussions have been 
related to a 1981 representative price of $7/lb for cobalt. 
The cobalt price, however, has increased from $3.98/lb in 
1975 to $25/lb in 1980 (8) and declined from that high since 
1981. Cobalt is recovered as a byproduct of copper and 
nickel; thus, the increase in cobalt price may have resulted 
in higher profits for the operators, even though the price of 
the primary commodities may have remained unchanged. 
Although the market price of cobalt is considerably higher 
than that of copper and nickel, the impact of cobalt price on 
the viability of an operation is limited by low cobalt grade 
in most ores. The effect of cobalt price on cobalt availability 
is illustrated in figures 22, 23, and 24 and table 15. The 
curves show potential cobalt availability as related to the 
required production cost of the primary commodity. Al- 
though the curves show cobalt availability increases that 
could occur at various cobalt and primary commodity cost 
levels, the change in the primary commodity and cobalt 



prices would have to be sustained over the long-term to 
warrant changes in production levels of cobalt or primary 
commodity. How long the price structure would have to be 
sustained is a matter unique to each producer or property 
owner. 



COPPER SULFIDE PROPERTIES 

At an average total copper production cost of $0.89/lb 
and a market price of $7/lb for cobalt, 1,105 million lb of 
cobalt could be produced from the deposits evaluated (fig. 
22). 8 An increase in cobalt market price to $15/lb results in 
a 17-pct increase in potential cobalt availability to 1,294 
million lbs, while a price increase to $20/lb results in a 



B In these analyses, prices are real prices, whereas cost is a derived average 
production value generated under appropriate economic assumptions. 







TABLE 15. 


— Effect of cobalt price on potential cobalt availability 








Cobalt at $7/lb' 


Cobalt at $15/lb 




Cobalt at $20/lb 


Total cost of 

primary metal 

per lb 


Recoverable 
cobalt, 
10 6 lb 


Recoverable Recoverable cobalt Recoverable 

primary commodity, pet change primary commodity, 
10 s tons 10 6 lb from $7/lb 10 $ tons 


Recoverable cobalt 
pet change 
10 6 lb from $7/lb 


Recoverable 

primary commodity, 
10 6 tons 








COPPER SULFIDE (PRIMARY METAL COPPER) 








< $0.89 
<$1,00 
<$1.50 


1,105 
1.219 
1,386 


22.9 
25,2 
279 


1,294 +17 25.7 
1,416 +16 27.9 
1,416 + 2 27.9 


1,416 
1,416 
1,703 


+ 28 
+ 16 
+23 


27.9 
27.9 
30.9 


NICKEL SULFIDE (PRIMARY METAL NICKEL) 


< 33.45 

< $4 50 

< $6 50 

< $8.95 


150 
176 
293 
323 


8,0 

9,6 

13.0 

13.5 


150 8.0 
198 +12.5 10.3 
300 + 2,4 13.0 
323 13.5 


150 
198 
317 
394 



+ 12.5 
+ 8.2 
+21.9 


8,0 
10.3 
13.2 
15.2 


NICKEL LATERITE (PRIMARY METAL NICKEL) 


< $3.45 

<$4 50 

< $6 50 

< $8.20 


41 

297 

1,212 

1,684 


0.24 

7.0 

13,1 

18.2 


226 +451.0 1.2 

297 7.0 

1,220 +7 13.1 

1,684 18.2 


254 

297 

1,236 

1,696 


+519 



+2.0 

+ .7 


1.7 

7.0 

13.5 

19 3 



'Base case— cobalt market price $7/lb. 



28 



° I 50 - 



.50 - 



1 


1 


I 


r~ 


- 






_$700_J 


- 








$15.00 


$ 20.00 








, 1 

r 1- 






1 

1 

r 




__r- J .,-■■■■ 
; " r~ 




..■rJ ■ 




1 


1 


- 


,-v 1 

^ 1 1 1 1 1 1 



250 500 750 1,000 1,250 1,500 I.75C 

TOTAL RECOVERABLE COBALT, I0 6 lb 

Figure 22.— Byproduct cobalt price impact on potentially 
available cobalt from copper sulfide deposits for various 
copper production costs and cobalt prices of $7/lb, $15/lb, 
and S20/lb. 




IO0 I50 200 250 300 350 40C 

TOTAL RECOVERABLE COBALT, I0 6 lb 

Figure 23.— Byproduct cobalt price impact on potentially 
available cobalt from nickel sulfide deposits for various 
nickel production costs and cobalt prices of $7/lb, $15/lb, 
and $20/lb. 



28-pct increase in production to 1,416 million lb. The in- 
crease in cobalt production is due to the greater number of 
copper properties that can cover all costs of production 
with the increased price for cobalt. 

At a copper production cost of $l/lb and a cobalt 
market price of $7 /lb, the increase in potential cobalt 
availability is 10 pet from 1,105 million lb to 1,219 million 
lbs due to the greater number of copper properties that can 
produce cobalt and cover all costs of production at $l/lb 
copper. At $l/lb copper production cost and $15/lb cobalt 
price, a 16-pct increase in cobalt availability occurs. The 
amount of cobalt and copper available at $l/lb copper and 
$15/lb cobalt is the same as that at $0.89/lb copper and 
$20/lb cobalt. This illustrates the less sensitive nature of 
cobalt as a byproduct to the total cost of production. The 
same cobalt availability is achieved with a $5/lb increase of 
cobalt price to $20/lb as with an $0.11/lb increase in copper 
price from $0.89 to $1. There is no additional change that 
occurs in either cobalt or copper availability when the 
cobalt market price is increased from $15/lb to $20/lb and 
copper is at $l/lb. 

When the cost of copper production is increased to 
$1.50/lb and the cobalt price remains at $7/lb, cobalt 
availability increases to 1,386 million lb. The 69-pct in- 
crease from the base copper production cost to $1.50/lb 
results in a larger potential availability of cobalt than does 
increasing the cobalt price by 114 pet to $15/lb with copper 
production cost at $0.89/lb. At the $1.50/lb copper produc- 
tion cost level, a 2-pct increase in cobalt potential produc- 
tion, from 1,386 to 1,416 million lb, occurs when the cobalt 
market price is increased from $7/lb to $15/lb. At $20/lb 
cobalt, 1,703 million lb of cobalt is potentially recoverable. 



NICKEL SULFIDE PROPERTIES 

At an average total production cost of $3.45/lb for 
nickel and a market price of $7/lb for cobalt, 150 million lb 
of cobalt is potentially available from nickel sulfide 
deposits (fig. 23). An increase in market price of cobalt to 
$15/lb and $20/lb causes no change in availability of cobalt. 
The increase in the potential revenue of cobalt is not suffi- 
cient to reduce the total cost of production of any of the 
higher cost properties to the $3.45/lb nickel level. This is 



due to the low cobalt recovery and grades of many of the 
nickel properties, which are not as sensitive to higher 
cobalt prices. 

When the cost of nickel production is increased to 
$4.50/lb, cobalt production increases to 176 million lb for 
the $7/lb cobalt price. When the cobalt price is $15/lb, the 
potential cobalt availability is increased by 12.5 pet to 198 
million lb. A cobalt price increase to $20/lb would bring in 
no new cobalt production. Some higher cost sulfide opera- 
tions are almost viable at a nickel production cost of 
$4.50/lb and are sensitive to cobalt price changes, as can be 
noted by the slight increase in nickel and/or cobalt avail- 
ability at this level as the cobalt price increases. At an 
average total production cost for nickel of $6.50/lb, cobalt 
availability is insensitive to cobalt price. All cobalt from 
nickel sulfide properties is potentially available at $20/lb 
cobalt and $8.95/lb nickel. 



NICKEL LATERITE PROPERTIES 

Nickel laterite deposits typically have higher produc- 
tion costs than nickel or copper sulfide deposits (fig. 24). 




250 500 750 1,000 1,250 1,500 

TOTAL RECOVERABLE COBALT, I0 6 lb 



750 



Figure 24.— Byproduct cobalt price impact on potentially 
available cobalt from nickel laterite deposits for various 
nickel production costs and cobalt prices of $7/lb, $15/lb, 
and $20/lb. 



29 



The vast majority of nickel laterite deposits cannot go into 
production at a nickel price of less than $6.50/lb. The small 
number of nickel laterite properties that are economically 
viable at $3.45/lb are very sensitive to cobalt price. At the 
market price of $7/lb cobalt, potential production of cobalt 
is 41 million lb. When cobalt price is increased to $15/lb, an 
increase of 451 pet to 226 million lb of available cobalt oc- 
curs. At a cobalt price of $20/lb, cobalt availability is in- 
creased 522 pet to 255 million lb. 

The fourfold and fivefold increases in cobalt availabil- 
ity as the cobalt price changes from $7/lb to $15/lb and 
$20/lb illustrate the sensitivity of nickel laterite operations 
to cobalt price changes when the primary commodity of 



nickel remains constant at $3.45/lb. Most of the properties 
that can produce at less than $6.50/lb nickel are available at 
$7/lb cobalt and $4.50/lb nickel, and thus further increases 
in cobalt price do not increase availability. Thus, there is no 
change in availability of cobalt as the cobalt price increases 
from $7 to $20 per pound. 

At average total production cost levels of $6.50/lb and 
$8.2G71b for nickel, cobalt availability is not as sensitive to 
cobalt price variations. The insensitivity of nickel laterite 
deposits to higher cobalt prices is due to low cobalt 
recovery and grade. AH cobalt is potentially available at 
$20/lb cobalt and $8.20/lb nickel from nickel laterite 
deposits. 



IMPACT OF ENERGY COSTS AND CAPITAL INVESTMENTS 
ON COBALT AVAILABILITY 



Currently, in most countries energy costs and capital 
investment requirements are increasing. These increases, 
without a comparable increase in the market price of the 
recovered commodities, will reduce the availability of 
economic mineral resources. Sensitivity studies were con- 
ducted to indicate the impact of each of these cost variables 
on the availability of cobalt and the associated primary 
commodities of copper and nickel. 



IMPACT OF ENERGY COSTS 

The 1970-80 rise in energy costs significantly affected 
nickel and copper production and thus cobalt availability. 
From 1977 to 1979, fuel oil costs rose as much as 52 pet (25, 
p. 81). When the increased energy costs per pound of nickel 
were compared to the price change from 1972 to 1977, a 
significant impact was noted. In the case of nickel sulfide 
ores, the energy cost increase accounted for a 36-pct in- 
crease in the production cost. For nickel laterite ores, the 
energy cost increase accounted for a production cost in- 
crease of 73 to 138 pet over this time frame. Most nickel 
sulfide deposits are located in countries where low-cost coal 
and hydroelectric power are readily available. Countries 
having laterite deposits often rely largely on imported fuel 
oil for energy requirements. A number of laterite producers, 
including the Marinduque Mine in the Philippines and 
Greenvale in Australia, are considering coal conversion 



projects, but whether the potential savings will fully 
justify the additional capital costs has yet to be determin- 
ed. Energy costs account for 15 to 20 pet of total operating 
costs for nickel sulfide ores and 40 to 60 pet for nickel 
laterite ores 126). 

Table 16 shows the effect of a long-term increase in 
energy costs on the availability of cobalt from the copper 
and nickel properties when energy costs were increased 20, 
50, and 75. 

For copper sulfide deposits, an average total cost of 
$0.89/lb copper was selected to measure the impact of 
energy cost increases. As table 16 indicates, copper sulfide 
operations are insensitive to energy cost increases with 
decreasing amounts of recoverable cobalt ranging from 1 
pet at a 20-pct increase in energy costs to 8.5 pet at a 75-pct 
increase in energy costs. Each 10-pct increase in energy 
costs tends to increase the total production cost an average 
of $0.02/lb copper. This is due to the low-cost nature of 
many of the copper-cobalt properties, which can absorb the 
increased energy costs and still have a total production cost 
of less than $0.89/lb copper. 

Many nickel sulfide mines operate at a total production 
cost of less than $2.50/lb nickel; therefore, a nickel average 
total cost of $2.50/lb was used to illustrate the impact of 
energy cost. At energy cost increases of 20, 50, and 75 pet, 
only a 6-pct decrease in cobalt availability occurs, indi- 
cating that the energy impact on nickel sulfide is minimal. 
Each 10-pct increase in energy cost tends to increase total 



TABLE 16.— Impact of energy cost on cobalt availability from nickel and copper deposits 





Copper sulfide deposits' 


Nickel si 


Ifide deposits 2 


Nickel laterite deposits 3 


Pet energy 

cost increase 

over base 

case 


Recoverable 

cobalt 
10 6 lb 


Change 

from 

base, 

pet 


Recoverable 
cobalt, 
10 6 lb 


Change 

from 

base, 

pet 


Recoverable 
cobalt, 
10 s lb 


Change 
from 
base 
pet 


(Base case) 


1,105 


NAp 


130 


NAp 


1,212 


NAp 


20 


1,093 


-1 


123 


-5 


486 


-60 


50 


1,011 


-85 


122 


-6 


356 


-71 


75 


1,011 


-8.5 


122 


-6 


297 


-75 



NAp Not Applicable. 

'Average total production cost of $0.89/lb of copper. 
'Average total production cost of $2.50/lb of nickel. 
'Average total production cost of $6.50/lb of nickel. 



30 



TABLE 17.— Impact of capital investment on cobalt availability from undeveloped properties 1 





Base case: 
recoverable 

cobalt, 

10" lb 


25-pct 


increase in 
investment 


capital 


50-pct 


increase in 
investment 


capital 


Average total 

cost of nickel 

per lb 


Recoverable 
cobalt, 
10' lb 




Change from 
base, 
pet 


Recoveragle 
cobalt, 
10" lb 




Change from 

base, 

pet 


Less than $3 .45 
Less than $4.50 
Less than $6.50 


68(6) 

117(10) 

1,106(20) 


68(6) 

84(8) 

325(16) 





-28 
-71 


49(5) 

84(8) 

306(14) 




-28 

-28 
-72 



'Numbers in parentheses represent the number of properties included in the average total cost range. 



cost by an average of $0.03/lb nickel. Again the low-cost 
nature of many of the nickel sulfide properties allows them 
to absorb the additional energy cost and still have a total 
cost of production of less than $2.50/lb. 

Nickel laterite operations are presented at $6.50/lb 
nickel in order to better reflect the total production costs 
and sensitivity to energy of these operations. Nickel 
laterites are very sensitive to energy cost changes; an in- 
crease of 20 pet in energy costs will decrease cobalt 
availability by 60 pet. When the cost of energy is increased 
75 pet, a decrease of 75 pet occurs in cobalt availability. 
Each 10-pct increase in energy cost tends to increase the 
total cost by an average of $0.16/lb nickel. Since laterite 
ores generally contain about 25 pet moisture, energy con- 
sumption for drying prior to smelting results in high cost 
sensitivity. Nickel laterites account for 84 pet of potentially 
recoverable cobalt from undeveloped deposits; consequent- 
ly, energy increases impact directly on cobalt availability 
from these sources. 



IMPACT OF CAPITAL COST 

The impact on the availability of cobalt due to in- 
creased capital investments of 25 and 50 pet is shown in 
table 17. Only undeveloped deposits are selected for this 
analysis because investments for most of the producing 
deposits have already been depreciated and new capital ex- 



penditures are limited to replacement of the facilities and 
expansion. Lack of a large number of properties would pro- 
duce a correspondingly narrow analysis for the copper pro- 
perties; thus, only undeveloped nickel sulfide and laterite 
properties have been analyzed. 

Without any increase in capital costs, the base case 
reveals the following potential cobalt availability from the 
undeveloped nickel deposits: 68 million lb from 6 properties 
at less than $3.45/lb nickel, 117 million lb from 10 proper- 
ties at less than $4.50/lb, 1,106 million lb from 20 properties 
at less than $6.50/lb. When capital costs are increased 25 
pet, no change occurs at a cost of production less than 
$3.45/lb nickel. This is due to the fact that these properties 
have a cost of production closer to $2.50/lb and thus were 
able to absorb the capital cost increase and remain under 
$3.45. At a 50-pct increase in capital cost, oneiof the proper- 
ties can no longer produce at $3.45/lb nickel. 

For properties able to produce at $4.50/lb nickel, an in- 
crease of 25 pet capital cost will eliminate two properties 
and decrease available cobalt by 28 pet; no further change 
occurs with a 50-pct capital cost increase. 

The drastic decrease in cobalt availability at less than 
$6.50/lb nickel with capital cost increase from 25 to 50 pet 
reflects that many of these properties have costs of produc- 
tion close to $6.50 and the capital cost increase is sufficient 
to increase the costs of production above the 
less-than-$6.50/lb range. 



CONCLUSIONS 



Cobalt availability from mineral sources was analyzed 
by completing economic evaluations of selected mineral 
deposits that produce cobalt as a primary product or 
byproduct. The average cost of production, including a 
15-pct DCFROR for each deposit, was estimated. The prop- 
erties were grouped by deposit type, country, and produc- 
tion status. 

The evaluated deposits have a total potentially recover- 
able cobalt resource of 3,926 million lb at the demonstrated 
level: 33.5 pet from Zaire, 28.7 pet from New Caledonia, 9.7 
pet from the United States, 8.0 pet from Zambia, 7.6 pet 
from the Philippines, 4.1 pet from Canada, and 8.4 pet from 
other countries. 

Cobalt recovery is dependent not only on its market 
price, but also on the market price of the primary commod- 
ity with which it is associated. A change in the primary 
commodity price impacts the availability of cobalt. At 1981 
trend prices, a total of 1,330 million lb of cobalt is 



recoverable: 83 pet from copper deposits, 11 pet from nickel 
sulfide deposits, 3 pet from nickel laterite deposits, 2 pet 
from platinum deposits, and 1 pet from primary cobalt 
deposits. The above amount is available from 27 producing 
deposits (7 copper, 17 nickel, 2 platinum, and 1 primary) 
and 7 undeveloped deposits (1 copper and 6 nickel). The pro- 
ducing mines would contribute 1,255 million lb, while the 
undeveloped deposits would account for 75 million lb of 
total potential cobalt production. To obtain the entire 3,926 
million lb of potentially recoverable cobalt at an average 
total cost of $7/lb cobalt, the copper properties would re- 
quire a long-term copper market price of $2.83/lb and the 
nickel properties would require a market price of $9.21/lb. 
Based upon 1981 market prices and existing or ex- 
pected increases in annual capacities, the 24 producing 
nickel and copper properties that can cover their total cost 
of production, including a 15-pct DCFROR, can meet fore- 
casted cobalt demand for only the next decade. The poten- 



31 



tial capacity levels of these properties are 47.8 million lb in 
1985 and 42.2 million lb in 1990. By 1990 and beyond, 
forecasted demand will exceed annual capacity unless non- 
producing properties start production, current producers 
expand capacity, or marginal producers can continue to 
operate over the long term. 

At 1981 market prices, seven currently undeveloped 
deposits could cover their total cost of production; six of 
these are nickel deposits that have not been developed due 
to sluggish nickel demand, and one is a copper deposit with 
limited resources. These properties account for a potential 
annual capacity of 1.7 million lb of cobalt in 1985 and 3.5 
million lb in 1990. These seven undeveloped deposits, prin- 
cipally in North America, would be the first expected new 
producers if demand increased. 

For the studied deposits, 25 producing properties are 
not able to cover all costs of production at 1981 market 
prices. Six of these properties are copper producers whose 
costs of production range from $0.90 to $1.39/lb copper; 19 
are nickel properties with costs of production ranging from 
$3.50 to $6.82/lb nickel. These properties, which could ac- 
count for an annual capacity of 23.8 million lb of cobalt in 
1985, will only produce for the long term if market prices of 
the recovered commodities increase or if Government 
policies or subsidies or company policies allow continued 
production. 

Nineteen undeveloped nickel sulfide deposits have 
total production costs ranging from $3.59 to $9.21/lb 
nickel. However, 42.6 pet of the cobalt resources from these 
properties can be produced at less than $6/lb nickel with an 



annual capacity of 7.4 million lb in 4 yr after preproduction 
is initiated. These deposits are in North America and could 
provide a future cobalt source if nickel price and demand 
increase. 

Two undeveloped nickel laterite deposits have total 
production costs between $3.50 and $6/lb nickel, and their 
contribution with 4-yr preproduction could be 4.2 million lb 
of cobalt. Finally, of the studied properties, 13 copper and 
nickel laterite nonproducing deposits have such a large pro- 
duction cost that their availability for production in the 
near future seem unlikely. Three of these deposits are 
copper-cobalt properties, with a total cost of production of 
over $2.50/lb copper. Ten are nickel laterite deposits with a 
total cost of production of over $6/lb nickel, principally 
from Pacific Basin deposits. Their contribution with 4 yr of 
preproduction could be 19 million lb of cobalt at proposed 
capacities. 

This study has further indicated the loss of cobalt to 
ferronickel production from 22 nickel properties as 1,138 
million lb. This cobalt will only be available if technology 
and market conditions change in favor of matte production. 

The nickel laterite properies proved to be the most sen- 
sitive with respect to energy cost change. An increase in 
energy costs of 20 pet would decrease cobalt availability by 
60 pet from nickel laterites. Capital investment cost in- 
creases can significantly affect the availability of nickel 
and cobalt; an increase of 25 pet reduces cobalt availability 
from the undeveloped nickel deposits 71 pet at $6.50/lb 
nickel. 



REFERENCES 



1. Kirk, W. S. Cobalt. Ch. in BuMines Minerals Yearbook 

1982, v. 1, pp. 249-257. 

2. National Materials Advisory Board. Cobalt Conservation 
Through Technological Alternatives. Natl. Acad. Sci., 
Washington, DC, NMAB-406, 1983, 204 pp. 

3. Wyllie, R. J. M. Cobalt. Miller Freeman Publications, San 
Francisco, CA, 1979, 240 pp. 

4. Kirk, W. Cobalt. BuMines Mineral Commodity Profile, 

1983, 16 pp. 

5. Rummer, J. T. Cobalt. Ch. in BuMines Minerals Yearbook 
1980, v. 1, pp. 237-247. 

6. Sibley, S. F., and W. S. Kirk. Cobalt. Ch. in BuMines 
Minerals Yearbook 1981, v. 1, pp. 257-266. 

7. Babitzke, H. R., A. R. Barsotti, S. J. Coffman, J. G. Thomp- 
son, and H. J. Bennett. The Bureau of Mines Minerals Availability 
System: An Update of Information Circular 8654. BuMines IC 
8887, 1982, 54 pp. 

8. U.S. Bureau of Mines and U.S. Geological Survey. Prin- 
ciples of a Resource/Reserve Classification for Minerals. U.S. Geol. 
Surv. Ore. 831, 1980, 5 pp. 

9. Stermole, F. J. Economic Evaluation and Investment Deci- 
sion Methods. Investment Evaluations Corp., Golden, CO, 1980, 
443 pp. 

10. Davidoff, R. L. Supply Analysis Model (SAM): A Minerals 
Availability System Methodology. BuMines IC 8820, 1980, 45 pp. 

11. U.S. Bureau of Mines. Minerals & Materials— A Monthly 
Survey. April 1981, 49 pp. 

12. . Minerals & Materials— A Bimonthly Survey. 

June/July 1983, 43 pp. 

13. Peterson, G. R., D. I. Bleiwas, and P. R. Thomas. Cobalt 
Availability— Domestic, A Minerals Availability System Ap- 
praisal. BuMines IC 8848, 1981, 31 pp. 

14. McKelvey, V. E., R. W. Roland, and V. A. Wright. 
Manganese Nodule Resources in the Northeastern Equatorial 
Pacific. U.S. Geol. Surv. OFR 78-814, 1978, 37 pp. 



15. Engineering and Mining Journal. Canadian Mineral 
Resources. V. 182, No. 11, 1981, pp. 70-83. 

16. Sudbury: The World's Largest Nickel District. V. 

182, No. 11, 1981, pp. 84-93. 

17. Mohidie, T. P., C. L. Warden, and J. D. Mason. Towards a 
Nickel Policy for the Province of Ontario. Mineral Resources 
Branch, Division of Mines, Mineral Policy Background Paper No. 
4, December 1981, 53 pp. 

18. Hays, R. M. Environmental, Economic, and Social Impacts 
of Mining Copper-Nickel in Northeastern Minnesota. Report on 
BuMines contract S0133084 with Dep. Civil and Miner. Eng., 
Univ. MN, Aug. 1974, 123 pp.; available upon request from D. A. 
Buckingham, Minerals Availability Field Office, BuMines Denver, 
CO. 

19. lull, R. E. State Mineral Policy and Copper-Nickel Mining 
Profitability. MN Environ. Quality Board, Regional Copper- 
Nickel Study, V. 5, 1977, 63 pp. 

20. Buchanan, D. L. Platinum— Great Importance of Bushveld 
Complex. World Min., v. 33, No. 9, 1980, pp. 56-59. 

21. Engineering and Mining Journal. CIPEC's Big Four. V. 
180, No. 11, 1979, pp. 66-206. 

22. Evans, D. J. I., R. S. Shoemaker, and H. Veltman (eds.). In- 
ternational Laterite Symposium. New Orleans, Louisiana, 
February 19 to 21, 1979. Soc. Min. Eng. AIME, New York, 1979, 
687 pp. 

23. Brook Hunt & Associates, Ltd. Cobalt, A Review and 
Outlook to 1985. London, 1981, 101 pp. 

24. Siemens, R. E., and J. D. Covrick. Process for Recovery of 
Nickel, Cobalt, and Copper From Domestic Laterites. Min. Congr. 
J., v. 163, No. 1, 1977, pp. 29-34. 

25. Bureau of Statistics of the International Monetary Fund. 
International Financial Statistics. V. 43, 1981, 471 pp. 

26. Lemons, J. F., Jr. A Nickel's Worth of Change. Paper in 
Mineral Resources of the Pacific Rim. Proc. 1st Int. SME-AIME 
fall meeting, Honolulu, Hawaii, Sept. 4-9, 1982, pp. 205-211. 



32 



APPENDIX.— Properties investigated but not included in study 1 



Country and 
property name 



Status 2 



Type of 
operation 3 



Owner 



NICKEL-COBALT PROPERTIES 



Australia: 

Agnew 

Ora Banda 

Sherlock Bay 

Wannaway 

Windarra 

Wingellina 

Brazil: 

Barro Alto 

Jussara 

Montes Claros 

Morro do Engenho 

Sao Felix do Xingu 

Sao Joaos do Piaui 

Canada: 

Bowden Lake 

Dumont Nickel 

Expo Ungava 

Moak 

Raglan Nickel Deposit 

Texmont 

Colombia: Cerro Matoso 

Dominican Republic: Falcondo Bonao 

Finland: 

Hitura 

Kotalahti 

Greece: 

Euboea 

loannis 

Indonesia: 

Pomalaa 

Soroako 

Philippines: 

Acoje , 

Borongan 

Dinagat 

Ipilan 

Makambal 

Mt. Kadig 

Rio Tuba 

Sablayan 

Upper Volta: Boromo Greenstone . . . 



Zimbabwe: 
Epoch . . 
Madziwa 



P 
N 
N 
N 
N 
N 
P 
N 



Agnew Mining Co. 
Western Mining Corp. 
Australian Inland Exploration Ltd. 
Metals Exploration Ltd. 
Western Mining— Shell Australia. 
Texas Gulf. 



Baminco-Mineracao, Siderurg. 
Companhia Minerada Montita. 
Vatorantin Financial Group. 
Companhia Do Pesquiso Do. 
Mineracao Do Sul. 
Rio Doce Geologica E Miner. 



Falconbridge and others. 

Boliden AB and Timiskamig. 

Expo Ungava Mines Ltd. 

Inco. 

Falconbridge. 

New Texmont Exploration Ltd. 

Econiquel-Billiton-Hanna. 

Falconbridge. 



Outokumpu Oy. 
Do. 



Larco. 
Do. 



Indonesian Government. 
P. T. Inco. 



Acoje Mining Co. 
G. Y. Ornopia and Associate. 
Marinduque Mining Corp. 
De Lara Mining Corp. 
LBC & Greenfield Mining Co. 
Horizon Minerals & Oil Co. 
Rio Tuba Mining Co. 
Anglo Philippine Oil Corp. 

Government of Upper Volta. 



Trojan Nickel Co. 
Madziwa Mines Ltd. 



33 

APPENDIX.— Properties investigated but not included in study 1 — Continued 

Country and Type of 

property name Status 2 operation 3 Owner 

COPPER-COBALT PROPERTIES 

Canada: Thierry P U Union Miniere, S. A. Brussels 

Zaire: 

Kamoto (open pit) P S Gecamines. 

Musonoi P S Do. 

Musoshi Kensenda P U Sodimiza. 

Zambia: 

Kansanshi P S,U Zambia Copper Consolidated Mines 

(ZCCM). 

Luanshya P U Do. 

Mufulira P U Do 

'Potential sources of cobalt not evaluated in this study include nickel laterite deposits where cobalt is being 
recovered within a ferronickel product or where cobalt grades are not available, or cobalt is recovered from recyling 
operations. 

2 P— Producing; N — Nonproducing. 

3 U— Underground; S— Surface. 



itU.S. CPO: 1985-505-019/20,021 



INT.-BU.OF MINES, PGH., PA. 27978 



■mnn 



: 



D DD 



n 

o 


> 




3 


O 


73 


m 


Q_ 


o 


Q 


o 


n 


2 


n 

— *- 

Q 


Q_ 

(5 
</> 

C/l 

n 


3 

o 

c 


D 


3 
O 

-*- 

c/i 


C 

o 


X > 


_. 


3" 


3 


XI 


3" 


w 


2m 


3 


Q 


Q 




-♦■ 


o 


n 


D 




m 


o 


3 


m z 
- m CO 

« 

O 




(Q 


^7 


Q 


-t 


ca- 


n 


n 


3 


l/l 


a 


rt 


Q 

-*■ 

Q- 

m 


~0 

a 


t/i 

-t- 
• 


3 


o 
n 
< 


• 




Q 




o 


u - 




O 



CD 

xg ro 
O o c 

r> m 

~ V J3 > 
Tl £; C 

# mo 

-<> S 

r- < - 
< m z 
> z m 
z c en 
>m 



O 
m 

> 

3J 

li 

"Tl </) 

m 

H 

m 
O 

33 



> 
Z 
m 
D 
c 
> 

o 

"0 
T) 
O 
31 

H 
C 
Z 

H 
< 

m 



O 

-< 
m 

33 



U 453 85 



c 
to 

°s 

3> 

go 

- m m 
Z 2 > 

1? -• z 

a> ~n -n 

n rn 

I m 

m w 

5 "o 
5> 

m O 

O 
31 









& 



° > o ^»^T^K • 









f 






O V 






,-CT 









<^ *..o» .0"' V 






C 



o : 



O " o a » » A, «*" 



'of 



6l~ _ * 






,'o . o « o <j> ^ t / c «; 






O t» 



4 °^ 



V v 



^ 



^♦* 



,0^ 






^°^ •- 



^ °^ ", 



nn 










/.. 



\W*>'/ %?H&\* V^ T V" %.-• 

*r : *l8l*° *i : 'JBI' : v/ ! *iRl'*- */ -iSI''- V r *i 













^^r 






^>, WJW*" ** ** V^R*" a ^'>. 






^ . 
















C,vT> 











* .a. <; ^^fl^M^J"' *Pj. a4 »■ , i 




<v oV^»» -^ <- ;m&&:~ "*><? »^^a"» '^^ 







o, * 



o « o 



















& , 







'^^" y^s^^*. ^^ «^^ia''- '^^" ^m^^ ^<y o,^mx- '+** *am&-^ * 



'*& 
















,* v % 




^^r 














c v 



^o" 




-.- 



0' 



* °^ 4 A^ ... <X 






1 ^ *^ '•"^Bf^ ^ 





oV 









A^^ 





h*"" <f 



<^. *'T1* S ,G V *>. 



K >*^ : -W* /%■ l ™ : ** v ^ -.^° /\ -- 1 - 

^ » » ° aP V* • ' 1 <<y % " " »o Ap V •" / %. * o « ° ' jP 

-T^T 4 -G^ ^>, 'o.T* A <. *?Tvr* ,g v ^5. *o.»* A 




HECKMAN 

BINDERY INC. 




l._^k SEP 85 



N. MANCHESTER, 
INDIANA 46962 



Miiliiaiiiiiiliiii 




A> ' o n o "<6^ 
A^ *"^K* ^6 ^° 





<J> . o « o 



-^ . 






miiaM 




UBRA RY OF CONGRESS 

.■ ii mi I'll II II 1 



i 



5002 955 874 7 




